So! The first phase of the Groove Child® Toolkit pilot at Mudeford Infants School is over…but the mission is not quite over.
One-to-one feedback between our facilitator and the school teacher is scheduled for this week and we can’t wait to gather further insight into the toolkit’s ease of use, and it’s potential for contributing to both the physical and emotional development of young children within a Primary school setting.
But first! The news I know you’ve been waiting for…
What happened at the third and final Mudeford Infants Year 1 dance pilot class?
How did teaching assistant, Kate Jennings, get on planning and leading the Superhero session?
Well, although Kate (lets not be too formal, after 3 weeks) came into the hall whispering to our facilitator “I’m really nervous!” she certainly didn’t look it and immediately took control of the dance session. Her confidence was apparent and the creative ideas she’d come up with through using the Groove Child® toolkit framework were AWESOME!
Kate began with a Superhero themed warm up, imaginatively linking some of the stretches to ‘Spiderman web-spinning’ and ‘spine rolls for bendy ‘Mr Incredible’ and leading on to different Superhero jumps. The children were immediately engaged in the theme and already starting to add their own style to the movement.
Just 5 minutes in and the warm up had already gone above and beyond, creatively!
What followed in the session involved a confidence building exercise that all the children participated in, and a follow-the-leader movement game where children volunteered and had chance to be in Mrs Jennings place at the front of the room, leading the class through different Superhero movements.
To say the least, personalities were DEFINITELY (and safely) coming out, from angry Hulks to flying Super Girls.
For the circle focus, Kate chose to use the Groove Dice exercise, which she perfectly adapted with dynamic comic strip style words, such as BAM! ZAP! BOOM! and the class favourite… SPLAT!
This all led to the children collaborating in pairs to share their creations with the group. As the children sat patiently and awaited their turn they were encouraged to observe and be good audience members for one another.
What was really great to see was that ALL the children were fully motivated and engaged, and most wanted to volunteer and show their ideas throughout the session.
For the final part of the session the children learnt the SUPERHERO Dance, a set age-appropriate choreography, using specially created music for the Groove Child toolkit by Fraser Bennett of Freeze Records.
QUICK introduction to Fraser…
Fraser is music producer to Diversity/Ashley Banjo for their tours and TV appearances, and has undertaken many other musical projects including work for Disney. We’re so honored to have him on board as producer of the Groove Child® toolkit and syllabus music. He’s a big kid at heart and the ethos totally resonated with him – we knew he’d be perfect for the job. Fraser couldn’t wait to start work on music for Superheroes, Secret Agents, and Jungle Animals…it was match made in heaven.
Meanwhile, back to the Bat Cave! (…I mean, Mudeford)
To finish, Groove Child® facilitator Amy Reynolds whisked the children (and Mrs Jennings) through the Superhero choreography, culminating the session by having the children performing with super powers of their choice, and finishing in one mighty Superhero pose.
Year 1 had officially SAVED THE WORLD!
*Permission to collapse in happy exhaustion.*
Overall, the entire session was a huge success for teacher, facilitator, and children. It couldn’t have gone better, and we LOVED the way Mrs Jennings took hold of what she’d learnt the previous two sessions and adapted it beautifully.
This session was also a fun opportunity to ask the children “What’s your super power?”…and hear some wonderfully original answers!!! More on that in the next blog post.
Til then, this is mission control…over and out. x
Groove Child® classes are designed to help teachers nurture children’s positive sense of self, confidence, and self expression in a way that celebrates their individuality through creative movement and dance. Primary School Staff – visit our website TODAY and contact us to receive more details regardingCPD workshops in your area or personalised INSET training days for your staff: www.groovechilddance.com
Groove Child Dance Syllabus - Blog 