Running Head: I-SEARCH PAPER: DANCE A LITERACY 1

I-Search Paper: Dance as a Literacy

Larissa Ballardo

LBS 310

September 26, 2017

California State University, Dominguez Hills

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On a sunny Saturday morning in 2001, I arrive to my dance studio for dance practice,

excited and eager to learn new Ballet Folklorico (Mexican dancing) steps and movements. My

mother and I enter the dance studio and once I am inside, I find a spot on the bench, next to my

fellow dancers and rummage through my bag for my ballet and Folklorico shoes. My dance

teacher, Ms. Alicia, calls us all to the dance floor for our routinely warmup, so I put on my ballet

shoes and eagerly find a space to begin. As the music plays, Ms. Alicia recites the names of

different basic ballet positions and explains and demonstrates how to position ourselves to

exhibit them. Myself and my fellow dancers repeat each ballet position and applying the

movement by counting sets of eight. Once the warmup is over, I switch my ballet shoes with my

Folklorico shoes and get ready to begin to practice our dance from the state of Chihuhaua,

Mexico. As myself and the other dancers line up, ready to perform the dance, Ms. Alicia asks us

to “walk through” the dance without the music to reinforce the choreography and moves that was

previously established from the previous dance practice. As the task is being completed, I review

the steps in my mind in chronological order and answer Ms. Alicia when she asks us what step

and movements comes next. I also recite the step sequence, “heel, toe, heel, toe, slide, slide,

slide”, in my head as a reminder of the step that is to be executed. Once this task has been

completed, it was then time to perform the complete dance with gestures, emotion, and music.

The music begins and with this final component, along with the steps and movements, my brain

begins to connect all these aspects, and I then transform them to visually present and express

emotion of the rich, joyful dance.

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Dance has been a passion and a central part of my life for over 15 years. It is important

to explore dance as a literacy because dance offers the building blocks for several aspects of

development. It has given me the tools for courage, confidence, and commitment that would

make me the person that I am as an adult. Through dance, I have also learned skills, expression

of ideas and thoughts, and have developed knowledge with the expansion of my thinking. Dance

can be considered a form of literacy because it incorporates intellectual skills, body and motion

skills to create a cultural visual representation, in an expressive and knowledgeable matter. It

enhances communication and one’s learning and knowledge of the world around them.

Literacy contains several definitions. Some believe literacy is defined as solely reading

and writing skills one possesses; however, literacy can also be incorporated and found in various

practices and experiences. Children, including myself, partake in many multimodal literacies

that recognizes semiotic modes to represent and communicate reading and writing. In the article

“Exploring curriculum implications of multimodal literacy in New Zealand early childhood

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setting,” these semiotic modes include visual, movement, sound, and many others (Haggarty,

2010). Literacy can also incorporate an overlap of “emerging literacy behaviors that converge

and interact” (Roskos and Christie, 2010). Learning opportunities that intertwine these modes

and ideas, lay the groundwork for literacy enhancing experiences.

Movement and motion of space are essential aspects of dance. In Ballet Folklorico, there

is movement of the arms with a long-paneled skirt and movement of the legs and feet to

complete steps and footwork, using the ball and heel of the foot. Along with body movement,

choreography is used throughout dance routines. Choreography is the motion of an individual

within or across a space and can be formed with several formations and arrangements. This

aspect is connected to literacy because dance consists of constant upper and lower body

movements that present the overall feeling of the piece being executed. According to Haggarty,

“the capacity to construct texts which draw a range of modalities, to integrate words, images,

sound, music, and movement…has led to a resurgence of interest in representational and

communicational modes” (Haggarty, 2010). Movement, motion, and rhythm are considered

forms of communication. Rhythm especially is important in language. Although it is thought of

as a musical aspect, there is also a rhythm to words and sentences; for instance, when reading a

book or speaking in a conversation. Gestures and body language can demonstrate sensory

abilities, such as thought, emotion, and processing of information and applying it to a meaningful

experience.

Cognitive abilities are another aspect that can be integrated into dance. In dance, one

uses their cognitive abilities to complete movements, steps, and choreography, to the tempo and

sounds of the music. In a routine, it is ideal that a dancer execute each arm and body movement

and motion along with the time and beat of the music, and to do this, a child must think of all the
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movements, counts, and musical aspects at once. A dancer must also use their abilities to think

of the present and upcoming steps and formations in a dance. This can also promote narrative

skills in dance by thinking about chronological order of the dance, and using transition words

such as “first”, “next”, “after”, and “finally”. Multiple parts and modes of literacy, such as visual

and auditory aspects, hold a child’s attention and support the challenge within their thought

processes and critical thinking (Haggarty, 2010). Children in dance can obtain and practice

listening and thinking skills from the music and the instructor, and will expand their cognitive

development, that will promote literacy for school.

Visual components of dance are also intertwined within literacy. Visual aspects can be

represented in many areas of dance, including costumes, role play, and narrative story telling.

Dance illustrates visual depictions within its movement to express images or story-line; for

instance, in Ballet Folkorico, costumes are worn to symbolize the cultural regions and stories or

tales from Mexico. To support the demonstration, costumes are used to represent different roles

that the dancer is portraying. Role play can also be evident in dance to tell a story. Acting out

stories can support a child’s narrative competence as well as listening comprehension that will

later support their reading comprehension (Roskos and Chritstie). To further support this notion,

role playing can encourage provide one’s background knowledge of thought and feelings of a

character, and become more aware of their roles in stories and books.

My mother, who is an educator, believed that dance was an important component in my

early childhood because she believed that movement and music was important for my

development. She has witnessed and experiences my learning and developmental progress in

dance and believes it was an effective experience. As an educator, who taught Kindergarten, she

described how the creative arts was of importance to the curriculum. At the age, of three, she
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decided to put me in an organized dance class, where I was asked to follow directions,

movements, social interact and communicate, and follow rhythms and beats of the music. My

mother states, “During that time, Kindergarten was more developmental rather than academic,

and us teachers understood the need for these aspects of learning and how they were important

for developing a child’s social and cognitive development and providing the foundation for

school” (Lorraine Ballardo).

Many believe literacy is associated with primarily reading and writing skills. However,

dance has become a prominent part of my life and has contributed numerous factors to my

growth and development. Literacy can be found in various forms, including events that utilizes

modes of motion, cognitive characteristics, such as sound, and visual imagery. Dance is one

approach that has several aspects that interlink these modes to form literacy. Within the practice

or performance setting, practices of these aspects can provide a head start to the basis of literacy.

Dance is an activity that early childhood educators can incorporate in schools to further

support literacy. Educators can utilize several dance activities, such as learning different folk

dances to allow children to experience movement and motion of space, with music. When

children move, they gain a better conception of space and agility. In addition, early childhood

educators can have students take on character roles of different cultural folk tales and perform

them for others. Children can dress up in costumes to further take on the role they are portraying

and learn about the cultural significance of each dance.

After completing this research and analysis, I have gained a better understanding of

literacy and its many forms. This research is an important exercise one should complete because

exploration of various activities and events that incorporate literacy foundational knowledge and

skills. After writing this analysis, I find myself becoming aware and searching for meaningful
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activities from a child’s surroundings, that provide learning, skills, and practice that will prepare

them with a strong foundation for literacy.

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References

Haggarty, Maggie. (2010). Exploring curriculum implications of multimodal literacy in New

Zealand early childhood setting. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal.

18. 177-189.

Roskos, Kathleen; Christie, James. (2010). The play-literacy nexus and the importance of

evidence-based techniques in the classroom. American Journal of Play. 4. 204-224.