Seven Steps

Source:http://www.fess.com.au/UserFiles/Image/Usage%20Images/KneelingPosition.jpg

Content

Seven Steps is a circle dance as well as a memory dance, as the song continues that dance becomes more difficult as the moves and actions begin to add on. Sort of like creating choreography.

The Dance Components

Some of the different dance components include:

·      Participation dance

·      Circle dance (holding hands, in the beginning)

·      Isolation of body parts

·      Recognition of body parts (for younger kids and ESL learners)

·      Swaying whilst kicking

·      Balance

·      Adding on an extra move to the dance each time the dance gets harder.

Skill Components

·      Spatial awareness

·      Isolation of body parts

·      Knowledge of each body part

·      Following the instructions in the song

·      Memory of choreography (adding on a new step each time)

·      Levels (kneeling, head to the ground)

·      Social skills (in a circle holding hands, group work)

How We Teach

One way to teach different components of the dance is to introduce and deconstruct the moves during a warm up activity.

Deconstruct: warm up

·      Kneeling

·      Isolation movements

·      Breaking up the seven steps

Strategies

Being organized is the key to success when teaching a dance; make sure you have your resources ready, and the time and space you need to teach. Also be flexible, outcomes do not always turn out the way you have planned them, having a flexible program helps if things take longer or quicker to teach than expected.

·      Clear space to dance

·      Resources needed (music, cd player, words to song (you can sing it)

·      Outline to students behavioural expectations during lesson

·      Clear explanation of the activity (learning a new dance)

Curriculum Perspectives

Every Chance to Learn

ELA: 7.EC.3, 4, 13- Dance

ELA: 12.EC.1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9- Physical

Cross Curriculum Ideas and Perspectives

As this dance includes number and counting concepts some ideas that could follow on from this activity could be teaching your students a counting song that does to or above the number seven i.e ‘Doctor Nickerbocker’ which is a song where the children will need to count all the way up to number nine.

Every Chance to Learn:

7.EC.5, 12, 13

Another follow on activity could include, special attention on the number seven, your children could doing a cutting and gluing activity which involves gluing small collage materials in between the lines of a number seven template.

Every Chance to Learn:

7.EC.2

Resources

·       Lyrics and movement instructions:

The Seven Steps:        

Children form a circle

Have you ever heard of the seven steps?

Swing arms

Have you ever heard of the seven steps?

Swing arms

They say that I can’t dance a step.

Gentle kick,crossing over at front, changing feet.

I can dance like every other chap.

This is one

Child kneels on one knee

Stands up reform the circle

Repeat song and actions (until one knee- this is one)

This is two

Child kneels on both knees and stands again, reform circle, holding hands

Repeat song and actions (until both knees – this is two)

This is three

Child kneels on both knees and adds one elbow

Repeat song and actions (until both knees and one elbow)

This is four

Child kneels on both knees one elbow and adds another elbow

Repeat song and actions (until both knees, both elbows)

This is five

Child kneels on both knees, both elbows and adds one hand

Repeat song and actions (Until both knees, both elbows one hand)

This is six

Child kneels on both knees, both elbows, both hands

Repeat song and actions (Until both knees, both elbows, both hands, adds head.

This is seven

Reference:

ACT Department of Education and Training (2007) Every Chance To Learn: Curriculum framework for ACT schools Preschool to year 10, Canberra: Department of Education and Training.