Using Movement to Teach Academics: The Mind and Body as One Entity

Using Movement to Teach Academics will help you teach your curriculum through the use of movement and dance, while giving your students a chance to use their creative problem-solving skills. This text describes a step-by-step process through which you and your students can learn to transform academic concepts into actions and dances. Examples of movement-based lessons appropriate for elementary and middle school students are described along with a glossary that defines movement related terms. The book contains 83 photos and drawings that illustrate the text. Theoretical information is also included to demonstrate how movement-based teaching strategies connect with popular education theories such as Cooperative Learning, the Multiple Intelligences, Brain-Based Learning, Learning Styles and the Zone of Proximal Development. Learn how movement-based instruction complements how the human brain learns, while reading some persuasive arguments for using movement as a teaching tool.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1 Connecting Movement, Dance and Academics Chapter 2 Introducing the Learning Tools Chapter 3 Transforming Concepts and Ideas Into Movement Chapter 4 Teaching Through Dance-Making Chapter 5 Learning to Connect Dance-Making and Thinking Chapter 6 Creating Movement-Based Lessons Chapter 7 The Mind-Body Connection and Literacy

About the Author :
Sandra Minton, former dance coordinator at the University of Northern Colorado, is now a dance teacher in the Littleton, Colorado Public Schools

Review :
Watching the students "read" their books through movement was fascinating. By incorporating the entire body and mind, the kids seemed able to engage in the content of the books they were reading in a way that touched them deeply. Reading and learning became active and alive for them. With the continuing need to keep our students inspired and connected to the academic classroom, tools such as Ms. Minton's provide dance educators like myself with the opportunity to reach all students from the gifted and talented to those with special needs, reinforcing academic concepts through kinesthetic means. Ms. Minton brings an array of integrated curriculum elements from math and language arts into her dance classes. From this she builds richness to her lessons with props, music, and creative movement. Through my extended studies in dance education with Dr. Sandra Minton, I have developed a deeper understanding of dance and movement as it relates to the academic K-8 curriculum. Her application of contemporary educational theories and their link to teaching academic concepts through movement are clearly outlined and presented in an accessible manner - creating a jumping off point in which to develop your own individual movement explorations. In both my undergraduate and graduate dance pedagogy courses, I recommend Dr. Minton's books and workshops to my students in dance education as a valuable tool as they begin their creative careers in classroom. Dr. Minton's book has helped in teaching my IB Dance students not only choreographic concepts and form, but how these concepts can be linked to other academic areas. Her instruction is specific and easy to follow; any teacher can utilize this information. Her concepts are attainable to any student at any level. From the non-dancer to the advanced choreographer, these exercises can be used in the academic classroom as well as in the creative process. I have participated in several of Minton's workshops and am very pleased that there is now a book that includes her many examples of teaching academic concepts using creative movement. This book should be invaluable in meeting the needs of students with a variety of learning styles while also providing hands-on experiences, creativity and physical activity. Great examples for a partnership between the classroom teacher and the physical educator and a process for further collaboration. Educators throughout the world attempt to put into practice the work of Howard Gardner. Sandra Minton's work with movement and academics is just the tool teachers need to put his theory into daily practice in the classroom. Sandra was a presenter at our Day Of The Arts For Teachers, and she was inspiring! After taking Sandra's class, I decided to incorporate movement as a means to teach the math concepts positive and negative numbers. To do this, I had the students become a kind of moving pointer on an enlarged number line laid out on the floor. When they finished their steps, the students found themselves at the position of the answer and the looks of confusion and uncertainty were being replaced by the bright eye look, and comments that communicated, "I've got it now!" "I appreciated this experience because . . . [it] helped me think more constructively about what I already do so that I can do it even better." This well-organized book provides an in-depth approach for both beginning and veteran teachers....A compact guide for creating secondary-level, movement-based academic lessons.