Children love stories, and they love to move. So why not combine the two? Dancing is a fun and engaging way to bring stories to life, and dance can also help children develop important skills like creativity, imagination, and physical coordination.
So how do you use dance to tell stories? It’s actually quite simple. Here are some tips to get you started:
Choose a story
The first step is to choose a story that you want to tell through dance. You can use a traditional fairy tale or children’s story, or you can create your own story that is tailored to your children’s interests and abilities.
If you are using a story that is from a book, start with one you will be confident telling without using the actual text. It is important that you can use your facial expression, gestures, and body movement to tell the story.
Plan your movements
Once you have your story, think about the movements you want to use to tell it. For example, if you’re telling the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, you might use big, stomping movements to represent Papa Bear, small, delicate movements for Mama Bear, and quick, playful movements for Baby Bear.
Keep in mind that movements can be big or small, use a range of levels in the space, and involve a range of body parts. Small, intricate movements often bring the children’s focus to you as the storyteller.
Rehearse your movements
If you’re doing this for the first time, before you share your story with your children, it’s important to practice your movements so that you feel comfortable and confident. Even though you will be improvising much of the movement, you can have a few dance movements prepared for certain parts of the story.
You might even want to rehearse with a colleague or friend to get feedback and make any necessary adjustments. You will make adjustments in response to the children as you tell the story.
You may want to remember some of the movements that you did as the children will often want to repeat the story over and over again!
Use props and costumes and other sensory experiences.
Using everything from fabric to hats can help bring your story to life and make it even more engaging for your children. For example, if you’re telling a story about the ocean, you could use a light flowing scarf as the waves. Or use a bottle of water to make the sound of the waves.
Invite the children to join in
Early in the activity encourage your children to join in on the fun by inviting them to dance along with you. Having a combination of movements they can copy and parts they create themselves, gives them confidence to explore the movement.
It’s alright if some children just want to watch. You may observe them involving as a part of their play later.
Benefits of using movement in storytelling
Now that you have some basic ideas to start, let’s talk about the benefits of using dance as a part of your story telling.
First of all, dancing is a great way to engage children’s imaginations. When children see a story brought to life through movement, it can spark their creativity and inspire them to come up with their own stories and movements.
Dancing can also help children develop important physical skills like balance, coordination, and spatial awareness. When children move their bodies in different ways, they are learning to control and coordinate their movements, which can help improve their overall physical development.
In addition to physical skills, dancing can also help children develop social and emotional skills. When children dance together, they are learning to work as a team, take turns, and cooperate with one another. Dancing can also help children express their emotions in a safe and positive way.
Finally, using dance to tell stories can be a fun and engaging way to teach children about different cultures and traditions. You can choose stories and movements that reflect the cultural backgrounds of your children, or you can use stories from around the world to introduce your children to new cultures and traditions.
Using dance to tell stories is a fun and engaging way to bring stories to life for young children. By incorporating movements, props, and costumes, you can create an immersive experience that sparks children’s imaginations and helps them develop important skills like creativity, physical coordination, and social and emotional skills. So go ahead, put on some music, and start dancing your way through your favourite stories!
