MYP unit planner
Unit title Dancing Around the World.
Teacher(s) Kristin Tillotson
Subject and grade level MYP year
Time frame and duration
Stage 1: Integrate significant concept, area of interaction and unit question
Area of interaction focus Significant concept(s)
Which area of interaction will be our focus? What are the big ideas? What do we want our
Why have we chosen this? students to retain for years into the future?
Health and Social Education: Dance Students will be able to understanding how
education encourages respect and discipline dance was shaped form it’s earliest form into
for ones body and mind which enables the what we see today. All change involves new
student to make responsible choices. ways of thinking, reflecting on history as well
as comparing and contrasting. Students will
Community and Service: Students will gain be able to identify different dance forms and
knowledge and create an appreciation of perform basic steps from that genre.
other cultures and discuss cultural similarities
and differences.
MYP unit question
Assessment
What task(s) will allow students the opportunity to respond to the unit question?
What will constitute acceptable evidence of understanding? How will students show what they have understood?
Students to answer the unit question through writing in their workbooks and then reflect on their perception of
how dance was formed.
Students will be able to demonstrate their understanding of dance history and its technique through physical
assessments.
Students will also be able to assess their work and understanding of each dance form related to history
through the use of video recording.
Students will present knowledge of dance through performances.
Which specific MYP objectives will be addressed during this unit?
A- Knowledge and Understanding
1- Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the theoretical basis of the art forms studied.
2- Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of a variety of styles, developments and ideas, which
have shaped the arts across time.
B- Application
1- Demonstrate an ability to find original and inventive solutions related to their knowledge of dance
history.
2- Apply skills and knowledge to the art form studies to elaborate an idea, a theme or a composition
based on a historical piece of dance.
3- Present work through a formal or informal performance.
C- Evaluation and Reflection
1- Use group discussion and feedback to support and promote creative development.
2- Assess and appraise their work and work of others.
Which MYP assessment criteria will be used?
A- Knowledge and Understanding
B- Application
Stage 2: Backward planning: from the assessment to the learning activities
through inquiry
Content
What knowledge and/or skills (from the course overview) are going to be used to enable the student to respond to the unit
question?
What (if any) state, provincial, district, or local standards/skills are to be addressed? How can they be unpacked to develop
the significant concept(s) for stage 1?
There will be an integration of the MYP Arts standards with National Dance Educators Organization and PA
State Arts and Humanities Standards.
9.1. Production, Performance and Exhibition of Dance, Music, Theatre and Visual Arts
9.2. Historical and Cultural Contexts
9.3. Critical Response
9.4. Aesthetic Response
Students will have an understanding of the historical change of dance from ballet form to Hip Hop. Students
will focus on different techniques related to its historical context and be able to recognize, know, use and
demonstrate a variety of appropriate dance elements and principles to produce, review and perform. Students
will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of variety of styles that have been shaped the arts
across time and cultures.
Dance Movement Vocabulary - Human movement explored and practiced as dance, including proper body
alignment, and proper technique. Having an understanding of the dance technique being studied. (Vaganava
Technique)
Dance Making – To develop and experience curiosity and enjoyment in their own creativity by creating dance
movement phrases, shapes, feelings and complete dances. Apply knowledge, understanding, skills and
strategies to develop and elaborate ideas and themes.
Dance Sharing - Communicating with others through dance and responding to and recording dance by using
the language, concepts and principles of the performing arts.
Dance Inquiry - Asking questions, researching, and theorizing about dance as it is experienced and
expressed in a variety of cultural, social, historical, and philosophical contexts. Reflect and evaluate creative
development and processes.
Approaches to learning
How will this unit contribute to the overall development of subject-specific and general approaches to learning skills?
The instructor will use various ATL skill areas to involve all students in their own learning process.
1- Communication- being informed, including the use of a variety of media such as
video documentaries, online resources, articles and dance history books.
2- Collaboration- working in groups demonstrating teamwork, accepting others by analysing
other idea’s respecting others points of view, respecting cultural differences.
3- Reflection- self-awareness and self-evaluation through video analysis of own work and
journaling reflecting on their perception how dance was formed and their artistic development.
4- Transfer: making connections with dance history events in other subjects (art, music, social
studies)
Learning experiences Teaching strategies
How will we use formative assessment to give students feedback
How will students know what is expected of them? Will during the unit?
they see examples, rubrics, and templates?
What different teaching methodologies will we employ?
How will students acquire the knowledge and practise
the skills required? How will they practise applying How are we differentiating teaching and learning for all? How
these? have we made provision for those learning in a language other
than their mother tongue? How have we considered those with
Do the students have enough prior knowledge? How special educational needs?
will we know?
Students will be presented with an overview of Feedback: Teacher-led discussions to provide context.
the course outline that explains the techniques of Periodic quizzes to check progress, in terms of both
dance that will be studied along side the Knowledge and conceptual understanding. Use of
historical context. Students will also be provided observation and correction through modeling the
with a rubric that indicates how they will be technique.
assessed.
Methodology: The dance classroom takes into account
all learning styles, and the variety of activities and
Students will view documentaries and refer to assessments appeal to the different learners. Found in
Dance history books to gain knowledge on the classroom the visual learners will experience colourful
subject. Class discussion around the themes, posters, handouts, modelling the dance technique, and
ideas and the history of dance will be allotted watching documentaries. The auditory learner will
for students. Students will also reflect on their experience the teacher using vocabulary words, and
knowledge and creativity through workbook Do several different music selections that enhance the
Now’s provided in the beginning of each class. dancers quality of movement. The kinaesthetic learners
will be able to use the entire space to demonstrate their
Students will also participate in Dance understanding of dance.
technique classes to enhance their dance
vocabulary and how dance was preformed Students with special needs: will use
during the era studied. exploration through inquiry, modifications of more difficult
Students will have opportunities to practice moves, Learn dance as expression through creative
movement, movement therapy games and improvisation.
skills and knowledge through written and
Use audio and visual aids to assist in learning the history
physical tasks throughout the lesson. Students
of dance.
will have various homework assignments to
reinforce skills acquired.
Resources
What resources are available to us?
How will our classroom environment, local environment and/or the community be used to facilitate students’ experiences
during the unit?
A variety of resources include the MYP guide for Arts, Teaching Dance as Art in Education, Ballet and Modern
Dance: A Concise History, The Art of Dance in Education, National Dance Education Organization, Technical
Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet, Dance: The Art of Production, American Dance Therapy
Association, Dance Journal, and [Link], and various articles from the Newspaper: Arts
section.
Ongoing reflections and evaluation
In keeping an ongoing record, consider the following questions. There are further stimulus
questions at the end of the “Planning for teaching and learning” section of MYP: From
principles into practice.
Students and teachers
What did we find compelling? Were our disciplinary knowledge/skills challenged in any way?
What inquiries arose during the learning? What, if any, extension activities arose?
How did we reflect—both on the unit and on our own learning?
Which attributes of the learner profile were encouraged through this unit? What opportunities were there for student-initiated
action?
Possible connections
How successful was the collaboration with other teachers within my subject group and from other subject groups?
What interdisciplinary understandings were or could be forged through collaboration with other subjects?
Assessment
Were students able to demonstrate their learning?
How did the assessment tasks allow students to demonstrate the learning objectives identified for this unit? How did I make
sure students were invited to achieve at all levels of the criteria descriptors?
Are we prepared for the next stage?
Data collection
How did we decide on the data to collect? Was it useful?
Figure 12
MYP unit planner
