On a recent Tuesday morning, excited Class 2 students hurried into the Lower School Dance Studio. They gathered in a circle and faced LS dance teacher Susan Strong, who began to review their objectives for the class. “You must represent four different bridges in your dance,” she explained. “Who can tell me what those bridges are?” Several students raised their hands high and one correctly shared: Beam, Suspension, Truss and Arch.
Prior to this, the students had learned all about bridges in science. During their engineering-focused unit, they used the Design Cycle (Inquiring and Analyzing, Developing Ideas, Creating a Solution and Evaluating) to construct their very own bridges, which they later put to the test to see what weight they could carry before falling.
The students also spent time in Carl Schurz Park, where they sketched the three types of bridges they could see from the pier. Head of LS Science Mary Ostrover commented, “It was so special that we could actually see these bridges in real life during the unit!”
Fortified with this knowledge, the second graders arrived ready to tackle their interdisciplinary assignment. “Between each bridge, I also want you to incorporate a New York City story,” Ms. Strong continued. “Some of you mentioned that a bridge could take you to Central Park or a gymnastics competition…think about how you can show that in your movement.” This intertwined with the students’ social studies curriculum, through which they explore New York City’s history, people and cultures.
To Alicia Keys’ tune of “Empire State of Mind,” the students happily dove into their choreography in groups of three or four. Using dance elements such as straight, curved, angular, twisted, symmetrical and asymmetrical movements, various bridges began to take shape!
“Remember to have fun and take creative risks!” Ms. Strong encouraged.
To represent a beam bridge, two students held their arms out straight while the third group member laid across them. Meanwhile, others chose to make a triangle using their bodies to symbolize a truss bridge. In a third group, two students faced each other, holding hands just above their bellybuttons to depict a suspension bridge.
Students were also encouraged to demonstrate “travel” between their bridges (over or under) which prompted the use of different levels in their dance. They implemented creative ways to show travel by twirling, leaping or cartwheeling. One inspired group’s members performed back bends in succession to depict arch bridges. Then, the student in the back of the line crawled underneath her friends to show a “car passing through.”
Imagination and creativity were on full display for the next thirty minutes, the studio brimming with activity. “They’re really absorbing the information and using it to inform their movement,” shared Ms. Strong, noting that she enjoys hearing their astute conversations as she circles the room.
Once the period ended, Ms. Strong reminded the students that they still have time to build on their dances. “Don’t worry if you didn’t finish today,” she assured them. With that, the students lined up and headed out to their next exciting endeavor.
