Traditions and Innovations Unit Three focuses on the dance of cultures and societies, past and present. It looks at influences and innovations in dance, how dance might transmit or question cultural values, and how dance is an integral part of life in Canada and beyond. Arts Education and Physical Education teachers are encouraged to communicate so that experiences in the two areas complement one another. For example, the students could learn a particular dance in Physical Education and examine the same dance and its cultural traditions in Arts Education.
Citations appear in full in the bibliography, alphabetized by title .
In this part of the unit, the teacher may wish to focus on dance from areas of the world being studied in Social Studies. Examine various cultures and their dances. Set up a display. Include maps and pictures of the traditional dress and the countryside. Discuss what might have influenced the dances.