Crossing
Paths
Movement
and Music Activity
 This
is a simple exercise involving planning and executing a movement
phrase, in more than one context. Best suited for students grades
3-6.
Step one:
Have the students work
independently to create a short movement phrase, (for instance,
8-16 beats long) The phrase should involve at least three parts
of the body, and must travel slightly. Make sure that it can be
repeated over and over. You may play music to accompany the movement
phrases, or have them create their own sound effects that go with
the movement.
Step two:
First, have two children
perform their phrase solo for the class, travelling across the room.
Secondly, have them begin on either side of the room, both moving
towards, and then through the middle of the room to the other side.
(Note: They need not be travelling in a straight line, however.)
Before they begin, instruct them that they will be crossing paths
with another student, and they should attempt to watch the other
person as they are doing their own movement phrase, while continuing
to perform their own. Encourage good concentration and a strong
focus in doing their own phrase.
Step three:
As they come into close
proximity with each other, notice if each of them changes anything
about their own movement. If they were able to keep their movement
phrase the same as it was when they did it alone, was there anything
about the quality of the movement that changed? How did the two
dancers influence each other?
Discuss the process
of performing their phrase solo, and then doing it in a situation
where other factors influenced them. You may relate this to migration
of peoples and the stylistic changes that occur in the larger context
of cultural crossroads.
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