It not only prepared them for what would be taking place in Wightman's classes with the students, but it also injected some fun into the staff meeting and got them moving. Students were asked to create letters of the alphabet with their bodies, as well as move as if they were walking on ice, trudging through mud or swimming along the bottom of the ocean. Their pictures depicted friendship, cooperation, caring and trust. As a result, the children experienced perseverance and teamwork, and they talked about how what they were doing related to Sadako lying in her hospital bed and folding paper cranes. In essence it's about transferring the information from the brain through the body and then back to the brain.
Dance can be the application part of learning.
Malmfelt watched during Wightman's session with her class of 2nd graders. I was able to see my class perform the final dance and it was refreshing to see all my children enjoying what they were doing, but at the same time expressing the feeling and story elements of the story. Through the dance I witnessed many of my struggling students more fully comprehending the story. Wightman noted that not all the classroom teachers were able to watch her lesson, or participate with their class - and this was unfortunate. Also, the class is meant to either springboard concepts that are getting ready to be taught in the classroom or to reinforce concepts that have already been, or are in the process of being, taught.