Yesterday I borrowed from the library a thick book with great color images of the art of M.C. Escher. The book is M.C. Escher: His Life and Complete Graphic Work by F.H. Bool et al.
My middle school students still love using books and images as springboards for warm ups and projects.
Escher's work is a great way to explore symmetry, connected shapes, patterns, and variation.
On amazon.com, you can find reasonably priced used copies of this book.
Today's post is from dance teaching artist Sheena Jeffers.
Dancers Among Us, which has landed itself on the New York Times Best-Seller List, began as a project when photographer Jordan Matter observed his son playing with a toy bus. “I was trying to keep pace with this three-year-old mind as he got deeper and deeper into a fantasy involving nothing more than a yellow plastic box and armless figurines. At least that’s what I saw. He saw frantic commuters rushing to catch the 77 local bus to Australia.”
The book captures movement, dance technique and creativity and exhibits how those three qualities interact with our regular daily activity.
The book of photography, from photo shoots with professional dancers, is broken down into seven sections: Dreaming, Loving, Playing, Exploring, Grieving, Working, and Living. Each section contains quotes, stories and photographs of dancers interacting with the non-dancing world around them.
The book is a great conversation starter for young dance students because:
-The students can identify technique through the photograph: Are the legs extended? Toes pointed? What is their body placement?
-The students can discuss the visual representation of dance with the larger theme and idea: What atmosphere were they photographed in? What is going on? What is the connection to real life? What is the photographer trying to say?
-The students can formulate their own opinions: What do they think of the image and the story? How does this relate to their personal lives?
There is a quote used in the book, that captures the energy running through each page: “I am a verb,” said by Ulysses S. Grant. The 229 page book, which also runs the reader through the development of each photograph, is fun and lighthearted even when tackling serious issues during the grief section.
Students, grades 6-12, will appreciate the photography, quotes and short stories as they see dance leap from the pages and into their personal lives.
Sheena Jeffers is a dance educator throughout Virginia. She is currently pursuing her Masters in Dance Education. She runs Ballet Shoes & Bobby Pins, a blog focused on initiating dance conversation and awareness for students, parents and dance admirers of all ages. Join the conversation; follow on Twitter: @BalletBobbyPins
Today's post is not a typical book listing on the Dancing Words Blog. But, for readers who are excited about the intersection of words and dance, check out this book. Descriptionary can be used as a springboard in dance classes with students in grades 3-12 as well as college.
This "thematic" dictionary of over 600 pages is list upon list of words. There are lists of clouds, dinosaurs, cooking terms, and key words for sports such as basketball and boxing. There is lots of movement potential. Look up a category, review the list of words and definitions, and be creative with using the words as a starting point for a movement project.
Descriptionary is the kind of "reference book" to keep handy on your studio bookshelf.
Over the summer I highlighted several visual art books I use in dance classes as springboards. My students love looking at beautiful "coffee table" books with the artwork of Dale Chihuly, Andy Goldsworthy, and more.
To add to our unit this spring about Alvin Ailey, I just purchased the photography book Ailey Ascending: A Portrait in Motion. Many major dance companies have published large size coffee table books – Ailey, Mark Morris, San Francisco Ballet, New York City Ballet, etc. Whenever possible, I recommend purchasing and collecting these books.
Whether you actively reference a book in a class or have books on hand for students to browse in your studio, I find that teens still love looking at these kinds of books. I selectively display a few by my classroom's door, and I love seeing which of my student sits down and starts to explore. Invite the students in.
Seek out dance specific books, but also consider coffee table/folio books at your library to use in dance classes – art, geography, photography, graphic art, and more. I love having a few books on hand at a time so that I can do group work, with each group having one book to explore. Another teaching tip – give the students Post-It Notes so they can "mark" the images they are exploring.
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