Dancing Words Blog

Category: Verbs

  • Plants Can’t Sit Still by Rebecca E. Hirsch

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    Yes, I can get very excited about picture books and the many possibilities for dance explorations and projects. The other week at the library, I stumbled upon a find that might be one of my top 5 favorite books for dancing, of all time! Really.

    The book published in 2016 is Plants Can't Sit Still by Rebecca E. Hirsch and illustrator Mia Posada.

    Every page inspires movement, level changes, and traveling. The book begins with:

    Plants don't have feet or fins or wings, 

    yet they can move in many ways.

    Look closely and you'll discover that plants can't sit still. 

    Plants can wiggle.

    As seedlings start to grow, 

    they squirm out of spring soil, unfold their leaves,

    and reach for the warmth and the light.

    Similarly done just here, the book highlights in different colored inks the action words per page.

    Rich possibilities are here to explore this long list of verbs from the book, as well as making a group dance using the entire text. Consider using the book in preschool, kindergarten, and first grade classes.

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  • Dancing Off the Page: Flamingos Fly by Douglas Florian

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    Douglas Florian and Barbara Bakos have created four delightful board books to use in parent/child, preschool, and kindergarten classes. Use the ideas for improvisational activities or group dances. Today let's explore Flamingos Fly.

    "Flamingos fly. Sailfish swim. Monkeys swing in a jungle gym." Twelve ideas/actions are in this book:

    • Fly
    • Swim
    • Swing
    • Dive
    • Soar
    • Creep
    • Dig
    • Lunge
    • Plunge
    • Jump
    • Leap
    • Sleep

    Simple, clear, poetic, and varied. The students will explore a variety of traveling and stationary movements and level changes. Encourage the group to consider the timing and tempo for each kind of movement as well. For music, try out the instrumental piece "Biei (Ethereal Flow)" by Kodo.

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  • Water Is Water

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    I am always on the lookout for great books about water and all of its actions and forms.

    Water Is Water, by Miranda Paul and illustrator Jason Chin, is an excellent addition to the collection. The words dance from one page to the next….full of action words, changing states, and a sense of play. 

    Read the book, list the action words, and create a dance. Or use the whole text and narrate the dance for your students.

    Misty.

    Twisty.

    Where is the town? 

    Fog is fog unless….

    it falls down.

    Patter.

    Splatter.

    What is that sound?

    Rain is rain unless…..

    Check out the book at your local library to read the whole story or purchase it here!

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  • Animal Action: Moon Forest by Patricia MacCarthy

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    Moon Forest was a great find recently at the public library. For teaching artists working with 2nd-5th graders – and larger sized classes of 10 or more – this story has lots of action and lots of "roles."

    A fox is traveling through a forest looking for food. Many animals interact and respond to the fox. The story so naturally lends itself to a dance, especially in a school setting with 20-35 children in a class. Develop the dance, and you can read the story aloud on stage. Your words and pacing can naturally cue the students.

    The story begins with:

    The great white eye of the moon looks into the forest. What can it see?

    A flitter of bats.

    A twist of briars.

    A dusting of moths.

    A coil of ferns.

    A red fox running through a blue forest…..

    An owl gliding between shadows.

    A warm breeze ruffling fur; a hunter's nose

    sniffing the sweet night air, 

    something stirring,

    a rat scuttling.

    Teaching artists can easily explore this book for several weeks in class, taking time to try out the many actions in the book. The story lends itself to exploring level changes, tempo, and a wide variety of locomotor and axial movements.

    Patricia MacCarthy's magical illustrations evoke traveling, swirling, dodging, and hiding within the forest. 

    Music ideas include songs from the album Chamber Music, a collaboration with a cellist and kora player (Ballaké Sissoko and Vincent Segal). Try out "Halinkata Djoubé."

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  • Still Time to Get This Book for a Valentine’s Day Dance Class

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    My copy of Eric Telchin's See a Heart Share a Heart just arrived today. My 7th graders are excited to explore it next week in dance. I think the book can be used with a wide range of ages, with students in grades K-8. 

    Telchin photographed hearts found all around us – light that made the shape of a heart, plants, twisted items, and much more. But, the real inspiration for a dance class will be the poetic language:

    See a heart

    Share a heart

    Catch a heart

    Keep a heart

    In the text, approximately 20 different verbs are used. The language is rich with movement potential and many creative interpretations of the words (change, touch, share, tend, warm….). 

    You still have time to find copies, new  and used, through Powell's Books and Amazon.com. 

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  • Stomp, Dinosaur, Stomp!

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    I was excited to find this picture book at the library today – full of playful action words to use with preschool, kindergarten, and first grade dancers. 

    "Mighty Tyrannosaurus loved stomp, stomp, stomping, gigantic legs striding, enormous jaws opening…."

    The book explores 11 different dinosaurs and a wonderful list of action words, including:

    • Stomping
    • Swishing
    • Gliding
    • Swooping
    • Soaring
    • Hunting
    • Pouncing
    • Zooming

    Dance artists can use the book in a variety of ways to inspire improvisational activities, a "dino dance," or little vignettes about each animal in small groups.

    Get your own copy of Margaret Mayo's Stomp, Dinosaur, Stomp for only $10 at Powell's Books. 

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  • Verbs

    As I was speaking with the librarian at my school today about a new book, I thought that today would be a perfect day to highlight some great books to use in conjunction with teaching VERBS in 1st or 2nd grade classrooms.

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    These action rich books can introduce students to a wide range of verbs as well as get them up on their feet – improvising, moving in a variety of ways, or making a dance based on a book.

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    Check out:

    1. Move! – Steve Jenkins

    2. How to Be a Cat – Nikki McClure

    3. Off We Go! – Jane Yolen

    4. A Child's Day: An Alphabet of Play – Ida Pearle

    5. Alphabet Movers – Theresa Benzwie

    6. Into the A, B, Sea – Steve Jenkins and Deborah Rose

    7. In the Tall, Tall Grass – Denise Fleming

    8. In the Small, Small Pond – Denise Fleming

    9. Star Climbing – Lou Fancher and Steve Johnson

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