|
MIYF Key
Points
INTEGRATION
MIYF is a
unique integration
of math concepts and dance skills that maintains the integrity of both
disciplines. As a model for integrated learning, the artist also
collaborates with classroom teachers to help them use this experience as
a touchstone for their students' future learning.
"Integration is different from correlation. Instead of placing
different subjects side by side to compare and contrast them,
integration uses the resources of two or more disciplines in ways that
are mutually reinforcing, often demonstrating an underlying unity."
(from
National Standards for Dance Education, pg. 12)
PERCUSSIVE DANCE
"Percussive dance" is a general term that describes styles of dance
where rhythm is made with the feet or hands. Most people are
familiar with the percussive dance style of American tap dance, but
percussive dance also includes clogging (also part of the American
tradition), step dance from Canada and parts of Europe, and other forms
like Flamenco (from Spain) and boot dancing from Eastern Europe and
South Africa. Percussive dance is full of
math -- making patterns, sequencing steps, communicating
new ideas, and knowing where your body is in space while
you dance.
WHAT MATH & DANCE HAVE IN
COMMON
Dance
and math are separate disciplines but they have common
elements. Usually dance is viewed as a tool for
creativity and math as a tool for solving problems.
However, both rely on aspects of creativity and problem
solving and both require the development of specific
strategies to solve problems.
To
create dance patterns (choreography) cloggers think
mathematically as they chose from movement variables
(foot placement, type of movement, choice of direction)
and change (transform) their patterns using symmetry.
USING MATH TO DESCRIBE DANCE
In MIYF, the language of
mathematics (symbols, abbreviations, and graphs) is used
to record newly created dance patterns/steps. In
addition, directions, degrees,
shapes, symmetry, and other geometric concepts can be
explored through dance (body smarts) and visually
(picture smarts, word smarts) on the page.
THE
POWER OF REAL-WORLD CONNECTIONS
Mathematical concepts can be made clear through
real-world experiences.
Math can be understood in
new ways when the body and mind are used in new ways.
Real-world experiences designed for learning and based
on the arts motivate students to actively engage in
their own learning process while improving critical
thinking skills.
Thanks to
Monica Condon, 4th Grade Teacher at Fishback Creek Public
Academy, Indianapolis, IN, for her help in compiling these
Key Points.
Residency Structure
Daily dance class
with the artist introduces students to clogging steps and other
feet-based dance patterns. During this time, students also begin to
experiment with and create their own dance patterns/steps.
Using daily themes,
the dance class introduces mathematical concepts that arise
naturally from creative work with dance steps.
Daily, teacher-led,
workbook activities connect these dance-generated mathematical
concepts to recognizable math problems. The mathematical
content of all activities was developed in collaboration with
award-winning math teacher Jane Cooney and is based on principles
outlined by the NCTM, upon which
all state math standards are based.
Daily reflection
journal prompts and word studies help students assimilate
newly-learned connections between dance and math.
For more information about residency
structure, please go to Sample Activities.
How do I know my students
will really
be learning math?
All residency activities meet standards required by the National Council for the
Teachers of Mathematics and National
Standards for Dance Education.
MIYF puts
discrete math concepts like angles, degrees, center, zero, origin,
symmetry, sequence, and directions directly into students' feet and
bodies.
Students
also learn to think mathematically while creating dance patterns and
facing the challenges of problem solving and the creative process.
During this process, they learn to better communicate what they're
thinking and doing and also become more able to connect math to their
everyday lives.
In general, MIYF takes
what students know and puts it in a new context. This process connects
previously unrelated ideas together, directing students to the
crossroads where disciplines meet and creating an environment for
relevancy.
Students are provided with their own
workbooks which becomes an integral part of the residency; it is used in both the artist's sessions and in the
classroom. The workbooks include written math extension activities
which strengthen
and extend the math concepts introduced during daily dance
activities. Also, daily journal prompts and word studies encourage students to reflect on
their learning.
Most importantly, Math In Your Feet! is a
collaborative
effort between classroom teachers and the artist. The classroom
teacher is an integral part of this program's success and its impact on
their students.
For more information on teacher
participation, please go to
Program
Requirements.
Want
More Information?
See
if your questions can be answered in the
Program
Requirements and
Sample Activities sections.
Interested in booking this program? If
you are within the state of Indiana, please contact
Young
Audiences of Indiana. If you are outside the state of Indiana,
please contact Malke directly.
You
may also be interested in finding out more about Malke's original school
program, Drum With Your Feet!
Math In Your Feet!
Ó 2004 Malke Rosenfeld & Jane Cooney |
