Staff Development Workshops:
All workshops are participatory and include learn today- use tomorrow strategies! They include a see, say, hear and do approach to learning and teaching! “Two left feet” participants are welcomed. No prior dance training needed.
- Elementary Education
- Early Childhood Education
All programs are in alignment with the North Carolina Standard Course of Study for curriculum and dance content:
Consultation with the sponsoring organization will occur prior to the workshop so that the specific needs of the participants can be addressed.
Skills, concepts, and/or curricular goals to be addressed:
The use of dance as a tool for instruction and assessment is a key component.
Move into Learning
Professional Development Workshop for READ! DANCE! WRITE! A Dance Residency with Jody Cassell
Learn how dance lays the foundation for literacy skills. Jody Cassell provides adults working in pre-K through Grade 5 with user friendly, participatory, take-away strategies for strengthening the foundation for reading, writing and working with others. Learn dance symbols and movements that ready the brain for learning adventures. In small group settings, construct sentences and informally present compositions orally and physically. Individually write the sentences. Learn how to use dance as a springboard for creative writing and the process of aesthetic criticism.
This workshop also provides a great learning structure for:
· English as a Second Language
· Dance and technology as a springboard for reading and writing skills.
Critical Thinking with My Feet! Teachers will learn how to take a basic folk story and ask open ended questions. The students verbally state their problem solving efforts and dance the results. Students are guided to write their new stories.
Dancing Math! Teachers will learn basic structures for teaching multiplication tables, division, graphing and telling time.
Dancing Maps/ Dancing Graphs! Teachers will learn how to teach their students basic mapping and graphing skills by dancing cardinal directions and making co-ordinate sculptures.
Dancing Science! Workshops in introductions to skeletons, muscles and joints; digestion and weather concepts.
DANCE! DANCE! DANCE! Full Day: In the morning: Learn Dance Concepts in the morning. In the afternoon: Apply these concepts to lessons that can be used the next day.
Place: Self and General Space
Level: High, Middle, Low
Size: Big, Medium Little, Near Reach, Far Reach
Direction: Forward, Backward: Right Side, Left Side: Up and Down
Pathway: Straight, Curved, Zigzag
Focus: Single Focus, Multi-Focus
Speed: Slow, Medium, Fast
Rhythm: Pulse, Breath, Pattern, Accent
Energy: Smooth, Sharp
Weight: Strong, Light
Flow: Free, Bound
Body Shapes: Curved, Straight, Angular, Twisted: Symmetrical, Asymmetrical
MOVING for Improving
HIGHER TEST SCORES/Best Classroom Learning Practices
Let your students stars! Prepare your students for optimal learning in the classroom and peak performance on tests.
Participants will be taught a 5-8 minute series of movements that prepare the brain for peak performance. Among these movements, are cross-lateral movements, vestibular movements and breathing techniques. Cross-lateral movements bolster problem solving abilities by facilitating the transfer of information between brain hemispheres and prompting the pathways for emotional balance. Vestibular movements have direct impact upon language acquisition skills, reading and writing. Breathing helps the brain remain properly oxygenated for efficient electrical conductivity. Participants will also be taught movements to enhance eye tracking for reading.
EARLY CHILDHOOD Professional Development for Early Childhood:
“Journeys All Around Us: Exploring Creative Movement and Story in the Early Childhood Classroom”
***Presented at The Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts and John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Art professional development series. ***
Turn your classroom into a learning theatre by using dance. Learn what dance movements are applicable to the age groups you work with, learn to use dance as a tool for assessment and learn to create dancing stories so that you can introduce vocabulary and prepositions. Learn activities today, use them in your classroom tomorrow.
MEETING YOUR NEEDS: If you have an area of particular need or interest, let’s develop a workshop to strengthen the teachers’ skills. I worked in a school setting for a three year period developing day to day lessons with the teachers. I am familiar with making lessons very curriculum specific!
Space and Technical Requirements:
A clean, open space with easy access to an electrical outlet.
Consultation with the sponsoring organization will occur prior to the workshop so that the specific needs of the participants can be addressed.
Contact me for Fee Structures and a Program that will meet YOUR needs!
