OPENER/WARM-UP

Daily Community Chant:

Chant Slides

Students will begin each day by singing the community chant below:

C-O-M-M-U-N-I-T-Y

That spells Community!

*Clap, clap, clap, clap*

Community!

*Clap, clap, clap, clap*

Repeat

Daily Divergent Thinking/Inquiry Question:

Students will answer a divergent thinking question each day of the mini-unit. These questions will be answered by drawing and labeling or completing a verbal turn and talk (this is indicated in the lesson slides).

Day 1 – What is community?

Day 2 – What types of communities are you a part of?

Day 3 – Who are your community helpers?

Day 4 – What type of celebrations do you have at home?

Day 5 – How can you use dance to tell something important?

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DAY 1: WHAT IS COMMUNITY?

Day 1 Slides

I Do –  What is Community?

• • Teacher will introduce students to the topic of community by watching a video
  • Teacher will review the types of communities outlined in the video, explaining that places such as our school, job, or church are examples of communities
  • Teacher will explain how dance has been used to build community past and present

We Do – Community Concept Map

• • Teacher and students will work together to create a class concept map that details what makes a community

We Do – Dance Technique: Unison

• • Teacher will introduce students to the dance technique unison
  • Teacher and students will practice the Bhangra dance from India

You Do – Bhangra Dance

• • Using the steps taught by the teacher/video tutorial, students will execute the Bhangra dance
  • WATCH: Student Bhangra Tutorial
  • WATCH: Teacher Bhangra Tutorial

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DAY 2: TYPES OF COMMUNITIES

Day 2 Slides

I Do – Types of Communities

• •  Teacher will introduce students to the three types of communities: rural, suburban, urban by playing a video
  • Teacher will recap characteristics of the three communities (included in slides)

We Do – Can You Guess the Community?

• • Students will be shown an image of a community and they will have to decide if the image depicts a rural, suburban, or urban neighborhood (included in slides)

We Do – Dance Technique: Formation

• • Teacher will introduce students to the dance technique formation
  • Teacher and students will practice the Halay dance from Turkey

You Do – Halay Dance

• • Using the steps taught by the teacher/video tutorial, students will execute the Halay dance
  • WATCH: Student Halay Tutorial
  • WATCH: Teacher Halay Tutorial

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DAY 3: WHO’S IN YOUR COMMUNITY?

Day 3 Slides

I Do – Who’s in your Community?

• • Teacher will introduce students to the topic of community helpers by playing a video

We Do – Analyzing Community Artwork

• • Students will analyze a painting of a community by explaining what stands out to them and why
  • The teacher will lead students through a discussion about the painting

You Do – Favorite Community Helper

• • Students will select their favorite community helper and complete the Favorite Community Helper worksheet, explaining what that person does to help their community
  • If students struggle to think of a community helper or just need support, there is a slide with images and names of some community helpers in the deck

We Do – Dance Technique: Partner Work

• • Teacher will introduce students to the dance technique partner work
  • Teacher and students will practice the Cha-Cha dance from Cuba

You Do – Cha-Cha Dance

• • Using the steps taught by the teacher/video tutorial, students will execute the Cha Cha dance with a partner
  • WATCH: Student Cha-Cha Tutorial
  • WATCH: Teacher Cha-Cha Tutorial

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DAY 4: WHAT IS CULTURE

Day 4 Slides

I Do – What is Culture

• • Teacher will introduce students to the topic of culture by playing a video
  • Teacher will highlight important components of a personʼs culture

We Do – Culture Discussion

• • The class will participate in a discussion that centers on the question: What is something that makes up your culture?

You Do – My Culture Activity

• • Students will use their knowledge of culture to complete the My Culture handout, detailing different components of their culture: language, family, where they live, celebrations, clothing, foods, arts and music, and things they play/do

We Do – Dance Technique: Celebration

• • Teacher will introduce students to the dance technique celebration
  • Teacher and students will practice an Afro Caribbean dance that was brought by African slaves to the Caribbean Islands

You Do – Afro Caribbean Dance

• • Using the steps taught by the teacher/video tutorial, students will execute the Afro Caribbean dance
  • WATCH: Student Afro Caribbean Tutorial
  • WATCH: Teacher Afro Caribbean Tutorial

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DAY 5: PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT

Day 5 Slides

I Do – What is a PSA?

• • Teacher will explain to students what a public service announcement is

We Do – How Can We Take Care of Our Community?

• • Teacher and students will work together to create a class concept map to brainstorm ways that students can take care of their community

You Do – Dance PSA

• • Students will work with their group members to select one of the ideas from the class concept map
  • Each group will create a dance public service announcement to demonstrate the way in which they would take care of their community
  • Remind students to use one or all of the dance techniques they have learned (unison, formation, partner work, and celebration) in their public service announcement
  • Students will then create a message or chant to go along with their dance

Example:

If I were implementing this dance public service announcement in my classroom, I would have students work in table groups. Each group would choose one way to help their community from a brainstormed list of ideas. For example, if a group decides to focus on cleaning up trash in their neighborhood, they might create a motion to represent picking up and throwing away trash. This could involve bending down with arms extended, closing their hands to simulate grabbing trash, standing up, and moving their arm to mime throwing it away. The group might perform this movement together in unison, a dance technique they can explain to the class.

To further clarify their message, they could choose to add a chant, phrase, or sign with words, such as “Pick Up the Trash” or something more creative like “If You Want Our Community to Have Some Class, Do Your Part and Pick Up the Trash.”

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