PE CHAP 1

• The word “Dance” come from an Old German word Danson which means “to stretch”
• All dancing is made up of stretching and relaxing
• Dancing is a means of expressing one’s emotions through movement disciplined by rhythm
• Dance refers to movement set to music where there emerges organization
• Dance as an art is one of the durable strands interwoven into our life as a people to form of culture. Dance has existed since man came into being
• Values of dancing

  • Honesty/ Authenticity
  • Partnership
  • Communication
  • Community/Fellowship
  • Health/ Well-being/Fitness
  • Creativity/Aesthetics/Beauty
• The Elements of Dance

  • Body
  • Energy
  • Space
  • Time
• Body

  • The body is the dancer’s instrument of expression
• Energy


  • An exploration of “how” a movement is done rather than “what” it is, gives us a richer sense of dance as an expressive art
• Space


  • Let’s look at where the dance takes place
• Time

  • Dance is a Time art; movement develops and reveals itself in Time
• Chapter 1 Reviewer

  • Personal Space
  • Negative Space/Positive Space
  • General Space
  • Levels
  • Directions
  • Pathways or Floor Patterns
  • Range
  • Relationship
• Rhythm Pattern


  A grouping of long or short beats, accents or silences
• Natural Rhythm

  Timing which comes from the rhythms of the breath, the heartbeat, or natural sources like the wind or the ocean
• Syncopation


  Accents the off-beat in a musical phrase
• Space


  Direct or indirect use of space