Intermediate Dance Disclosure

Teacher: Jennifer Pitt Email: jpitt@dsdmail.net

Classroom: Multi-purpose room Office: In Room E4

Office Hours: 7:45am – 8:00 am, 3:00 pm-3:15 pm

Course Description: This is a semester long, intermediate level dance course which builds upon the skills acquired in Dance 1A. We will explore in greater depth the elements of dance—time, space, energy, and body—through the study of dance technique, choreography, composition and improvisation activities, different dance genres and dance history.

LEARNING GUIDELINES, PROCEDURES & POLICIES

Materials Needed:

*Combination lock for gym locker. Please do not get the cheap ones from the dollar stores. They break after a couple of weeks. Also, DO NOT get locks that unlock with a key. It is too easy for the key to be lost. (*please see clothing guidelines below for more information.)
School issued device. This is the laptop that checked out to you during the first week of school.
Dance Attire/Work-Out clothes,
For the feet you can wear dance shoes, non-slip socks, or dance with bare feet.
Deodorant and other personal hygiene items to be stored in your gym locker.
Optional: Yoga mat

Dance Clothing Guidelines: Dance attire must be fitted to the body and cover the torso. This is helpful for me as a teacher to see proper Musculo-skeletal alignment during our various dance activities. Students have two options in dressing for dance:

Option #1 (Change into dance clothes before class):Students can change for class before entering the dance space. They will be given 8 minutes from the time the tardy bell rings to get dressed for class and to use the restroom. Roll will be taken exactly 8 minutes after the tardy bell rings. Students will have 8 minutes at the end of class to dress before bell rings to be dismissed.
Option #2 (Come dressed to school in movement appropriate clothing):Students can come dressed in clothes that follow the school's dress standards and are appropriate for movement exploration (NO DENIM OR SKIRTS/DRESSES PLEASE!). They will be expected to be in the classroom before the tardy bell rings.

Clothing Guidelines:

Tops: T-shirts (long sleeve or short sleeve) that are fitted and long enough to cover your stomach even while dancing. Leotards with cap, short, ¾ length or long sleeve lengths are also allowed. Wide strap tank tops allowed.
Bottoms Fitted dance/yoga pants, capris or shorts. Shorts/bikers MUST go to mid-thigh. WARNING--Some leggings have the potential to be see-through. Please check your leggings to make sure they are not see-through when you bend over. Work-out shorts or basketball shorts. I will also allow work-out pants, if they are slimmer and tapered at the bottom (soccer pant style)
Feet: Non-slip socks or dance shoes. Socks without non-slip marks on the bottom are NOT ALLOWED--This is for the student’s safety.
Hair: Needs to be pulled back and out of the face. Not being able to see while dancing can be dangerous. No hats or hoods in the dance space.

ABSOLUTELY NO: Baggy sweats, huge t-shirts, crop shirts, crop sweatshirts, crop sweaters, socks, gum, jewelry, street clothes, or pajamas

Classroom Expectations: I have high expectations for all the students. I am confident that we can make this a great semester of learning! R-E-S-P-E-C-T is most important in a participation class such as this. Let's work hard, but still make time for a fun journey together exploring the world of dance!

Be on time.
Dress in appropriate attire for movement exploration.
Come to class prepared to work and participate in all class activities. If absent, complete and turn in missed assignments in Canvas.
Be respectful towards yourself and others. No talking when the instructor is teaching, or when students are teaching.
No food, gum, or drink in the dance space. You may have water. It is recommended that you bring a water bottle with you to class.
Cell phones need to be kept in backpacks unless I ask students to pull out their devices for use during a lesson.

Citizenship: Failure to follow our classroom expectations will affect a student's citizenship grade. Students may receive an N or a U depending on the severity of non-compliance. Extra work/projects will be provided for students to make-up any "unsatisfactory" citizenship grade. (See School Handbook for further information on Citizenship Grade Policy)

Attendance, Absences, Participation & Tardies:

Students will be expected to attend class and will receive credit throughout the semester for their attendance. All in-class work will be posted to our Canvas Course as assignments. If students are absent for more than half a class period or all the class period for any reason, they will need to complete assignments at home.
Tardies: Please see school handbook for policy on Tardies. Tardiness is defined as not being in the dance space, in their assigned spot, with the required materials exactly 8 minutes after the tardy bell for those changing and by the time of the tardy bell for those who come already dressed.
Assessment Days: Assessments will be given on days those students are assigned to be in-class. If we are moved to 100% remote learning students will be able to do submit a video of them doing the assessment.
Sitting Out of Class: DON’T SIT OUT! Students will dance unless I have a note from a doctor or parent explaining the situation. If a student is injured and I have received a doctor’s note they will be required to complete the assignment on Canvas with modifications for each in-class day that they are not able to dance. This will be due on a specific date determined by the teacher and the student’s circumstance.

Cell Phones & Backpacks: Cell phones are to be stored in back packs unless the teacher asks you to get it out for use in class work. Please see School Policy Handbook for more details concerning the school’s cell phone policy. Backpacks are to be kept in a designated place assigned to each student.

Hall Pass Policy: Use of the hall pass is per the teacher’s discretion. Students using a hall pass for more than 15 minutes will be considered truant per school policy.

Canvas Learning: We will be using Canvas as our main learning platform. Each day of class will be connected to an assignment on Canvas. If students are able to attend class in-person, they will complete the assignment during class time. If they are absent for any reason at all, they will need to complete the assignment at home. It is recommended that parents and guardians obtain a Canvas Guardian account so that they can monitor and be aware of the course work that is asked of their student.

Assignments: At the beginning of each week, I will post the week’s assignments in the Announcements Section of their Dance 1A Canvas course. Each weekly announcement will include a links to the specified assignments. Students may also access their assignments through the modules link on the home page of our course.
Due Dates: All assignments are due 1 week from the time they are issued in-class.

Late Work: All late work must be turned in by the end of each term to get credit.

Extra credit: Opportunities for extra-credit will provided throughout the semester for those that have turned in all their course work.

Use of Media: We will be using a variety of dance on film, photography, and video recordings to reinforce concepts taught in class or through remote learning lessons. We will be using the Canvas platform as our main learning platform. We will also be accessing Nearpod, Flip-grid and Micro-Soft Teams in our learning activities. These will be used in-class and in remote learning lessons. Links to resources have not been vetted beyond the original page cited.

Video Recording: To assess individual improvement, students will be submitting self-record videos and be recorded in-class throughout the course of the semester. These video recordings are used for class observation, assessments, and group projects.

Grading Standards & Grading Scale: Your grade will be determined based on achievement of meeting the learning objectives of the course. Each assessment will be linked to the Priority Standards for this course.

Priority Standards focus on the following categories:

Elements of Dance--Time, Space and Energy
Body—dance technique, alignment, locomotor and axial skills,
Respond and Connect-dance history, dance genres, cross-curricular projects
Composition: choreographic forms, dance notation, dance production, improvisation, choreography with meaning.
Present: Performance assessments in the above categories. These will be done in groups that are selected either by the teacher or the students.

Assessments will be based on 4-point scale.

Here is a sample of the grading system based on the Element of Dance--Space

Rubric Example
4	3	2	1
Accurate in beat, tempo, rhythms of dance sequences.	Shows a basic understanding of tempo and beat, but sometimes falls behind and/or speeds up in places or makes errors rhythm.	Attempts to keep a rhythm but gets off beat and speeds up or falls behind often. Doesn’t follow beat in music.	Student does not attempt to keep a rhythm and is rarely on beat or on tempo. Doesn’t follow beat in music.
Meets or exceeds standards	Meets Standard	Progressing to standard	Standard not met

Grading Scale:

Grading Scale
A 4	A- 3	B+ 2.84	B 2.67	B- 2.5	C+ 2.3	C 2.17	C- 2	D+ 1.76	D 1.26	D- 1	F 0

Grade Break-down: Term grades are weighted in the following categories:

Daily Assignments 35%
Performance Assessments 40%
Unit Self-Assessments 25%

The Positive Impact of Dance: Dance can have a positive impact on student achievement, teacher satisfaction and school culture. Examples of positive impact of dance education in schools include:

Increases reading and STEM test scores.
Offers neurological benefits, including persistence at task, memory retention, and making cognitive connections.
Develops social and emotional coping skills, including tolerance, focus and engagement.
Supports integrated teaching practices
Boosts teacher and school morale.

**Despite precautions being taken by the school and the instructor, accidents and injuries may occur. By signing this disclosure, I/we (the student and parent/guardian) assume all risks related to the use of any and all spaces used for class-time instruction. **

**Because of the physical nature of dance the instructor may give tactile feedback to students. If any student at any time feels uncomfortable with this, please politely let the instructor know prior to class. **

Signed by Students and Guardians on myDSD