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Dance Tells a Story

Eighth graders learn how dance can tell a story without words — choosing a theme, creating movements that show events and feelings, and arranging them into a narrative with a beginning, middle, and end.

Grade 8Choreography45 minutes1 class periodArtistic ProcessExplicit teaching4 StandardsNCAS
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Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Tell a story through dance.
  • ✓Order the steps.
  • ✓Show emotion.
  • ✓Perform a narrative.
Essential Question

Dance can tell a whole story — love, struggle, triumph — without a single word. How do choreographers turn a story into movement?

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Put in Order · Interactive

Order the Dance-Story Steps

Project this and have students put the steps of creating a story dance in order — from choosing a theme to performing.

💃 Put the dance-story steps in order!Try it
Tap the first step!
The Lesson · Artistic Process (Warm-Up · Explore · Create · Perform · Reflect)

45 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Warm-Up — Story Without Words

5 min

Dance can tell a whole story with no words — how?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Show a narrative dance.
  • Ask what story it tells.
  • Warm up.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Watch.
  • Wonder.
  • Warm up.
2

Explore — Explore Story Dance

11 min

Students explore.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Send students to Order the Dance-Story Steps.
  • Order them.
  • Note emotion.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Order.
  • Note it.
  • Explain.
3

Create — Create

14 min

Students create.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Choose a theme.
  • Create movements for it.
  • Arrange them in order.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Choose it.
  • Create it.
  • Arrange it.
4

Perform — Perform

10 min

Students perform.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Perform the story dance.
  • Show the emotion.
  • Give critique.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Perform it.
  • Show it.
  • Critique.
5

Reflect — Reflect

5 min

Students respond.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Name a step.
  • Explain showing emotion.
  • Complete the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Name one.
  • Explain it.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the National Core Arts Standards (Dance).

NCAS
DA:Cr1.1.8

Create movement to express an idea or story.

NCAS
DA:Cr3.1.8

Refine a narrative dance.

NCAS
DA:Pr6.1.8

Perform expressively.

NCAS
DA:Cn10.1.8

Connect dance to meaning.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Story-step cards.
  • Sentence frame: “First ___, then ___.”
  • Use a story example.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with choose and perform.
  • Order two at a time.
  • Use a simple theme.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Choreograph a full narrative.
  • Add characters.
  • Use props or set.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Screen / board
  • 🎵Music
  • 💻Order the Dance-Story Steps
  • 👟Open space
  • ✏️Pens
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

narrativea storythemethe main ideamovementhow you moveemotiona feeling shownexpressionshowing meaningsequencemovements in ordercharacterwho the dance is aboutarrangeto put in order
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
What is a good FIRST step in a story dance?
Choose a theme or story to tell.
QUESTION 2
What three parts should a story dance have?
A beginning, a middle, and an end.
QUESTION 3
How do you make a story dance powerful?
Add emotion and expression to the movements.

Reflect: dance a story.

Have students choose a simple story or feeling and plan three movements to show its beginning, middle, and end. A printable dance-story sheet is in the Arts library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Dance Tells a StoryFlip
Card 1
Term
Tap to flip →
Meaning
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Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Dance Tells a StoryQuiz
Score: 0
1 / 6
Question 1
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Nice work!

Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Dance Tells a StoryPrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: arrange, character, emotion, expression, movement, narrative, sequence, theme
  1. showing meaning
  2. movements in order
  3. who the dance is about
  4. how you move
  5. a feeling shown
  6. to put in order
  7. a story
  8. the main idea

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. What is a good FIRST step in a story dance?
  2. What three parts should a story dance have?
  3. How do you make a story dance powerful?
Answer key — Part A: 1) expression · 2) sequence · 3) character · 4) movement · 5) emotion · 6) arrange · 7) narrative · 8) theme
Part B: 1) Choose a theme or story to tell. 2) A beginning, a middle, and an end. 3) Add emotion and expression to the movements.