Dance 9

Course Number: PE102

Grade Level: 9

Credits: 1 PE Credit, 0.5 Health Credit

Full-year, 2- or 3-day per week course

9th grade begins a rigorous technical development program and includes persuasive writing for dance by developing a creative eye to describe and analyze dance. Students spend the year in two technique disciplines (Ballet and Modern) to allow more time to develop the physicality necessary to successfully perform the required 9-15 minutes for the DP program in the 12th grade. The incorporation of media and technology introduces students to the many ways that dance information is communicated to the larger community. They learn to create a press release, design a concert poster, create a dance video and learn basic stage production skills to produce a dance concert.

This course is a prerequisite for IB Dance.

Dance 10

Course Number: PE104

Grade Level: 10

Credits: 1 PE Credit, 0.5 Health Credit

Full-year, 2- or 3-day per week course

A continuation of the technical skill development, 10th grade dance challenges students to find their “voice” within the work that they study and create. Students will select an issue that is important to them and move from conceptual ideas into physicalized movement and structure. Students will also explore the many types of dance careers that exist and the pathways that lead to them. In this year, students will begin to explore how they personally connect to dance and how their interests can guide their future. It is important for them to understand that learning to dance doesn’t ONLY lead to a professional dance career and finding their individual voices are essential to developing into an artist and planning for their futures. An emphasis is placed on students solving choreographic design problems by understanding and utilizing the 6 criteria used for evaluating dance. This course is a prerequisite for IB Dance.

Prerequisite: Dance 9 or Instructor Approval