African Dance Residency

The African Dance Residency entails 3 main objectives. The first objective is for students to understand and demonstrate various African dance moves found within traditional South and West African cultures. The second objective is for students to fully grasp the evolution of African dance and its global influence. Lastly, students will learn and understand African music as it relates to dance and tradition. Each class will build upon skills from the previous class. It will accumulate in a 3-5 minute piece that will be performed in the school.

Learning Objectives:

● Students will gain knowledge and understanding of African dance and its global influence.

● Students will view and analyze African dance; drawing connections between its resilient history and current themes seen in the dance and art world.

● Students will demonstrate knowledge, vocabulary, and abilities of foundational dance & movement skills explored through multiple styles of African dance, both following and creating original choreography, to communicate ideas through movement.

● Students will develop an empowered sense of self identity, resilience, and racial identity as connected to the history and influence of African culture across the globe through stories of artists of color who have made significant contributions to the artform.