Curriculum Implementation

Implementation Statement

Dance at KS4 structures the curriculum into a 2-year KS4 curriculum.

Subject specialists have given consideration and thought to the sequence and rationale of the curriculum; why we teach the content we do and in the order that we do. This is to ensure knowledge is not isolated information; it is connected knowledge that enables comprehension.

At Key Stage 4, the full BTEC Tech award in Performing Arts Award is delivered. Content is structured into 3 Components. We do not ‘teach to the test.’ The curriculum is designed to ensure students have the skills and knowledge to explore the arts industry, develop skills and techniques and apply these to a set brief. Each lesson builds on prior learning, allowing connections to be made between components have been organised and designed to promote learning and provide depth and breadth of understanding

Pedagogical approach

The pedagogical approach for Dance adheres to the LLT Teaching and Learning Policy. Subject specialists deliver the Dance curriculum through 5 , 55-minute lessons per fortnight

Rosenshein and ‘Teach Like a Champion’ strategies are implemented in all lessons and lesson episodes are designed to enable students to store knowledge into the long-term memory.

Lessons

Tasks and activities are engaging and whenever possible are linked to local context, careers and progression and develop cultural capital. Examples include researching practitioners and professional works and analysing their work.

Lessons are structured to enable students to review/retrieve prior knowledge and activate it to make connections with new learning. This is through ‘Do It Now’ tasks at the start of each lesson

In each lesson, students are informed what they are learning and what the outcomes for the lesson are. We call these ‘WALT’ (What we are all learning today,) and ‘WILF’ (What I’m Looking For.)

New information is delivered in small steps and models are provided to support student comprehension. Modelling of practical tasks are shared with students from professional practitioners and also from peers themselves. Lessons provide opportunities for students to practice applying their new learning. This may include guided and/or independent practice.

Questioning is used to inform adaptive teaching, and this includes techniques such as ‘right is right’ to ensure students accurately and clearly articulate their responses.

Students are asked to complete practical based activities such as creating their own performance following a set brief which highlights the key skills and techniques development from year 10.

Students develop essential knowledge and then apply it in activities that ‘bring it all together.’ This ensures they connect knowledge and learning.

Assessment takes place in the form of formative and summative assessment tasks. These are carefully considered and link directly to the curriculum intent for the half term.

Literacy

In Dance, teachers:

Clearly communicate their subject discipline using appropriate vocabulary. This includes the use of command words, vocabulary lists, Tier 2 and 3 vocabularies

In dance we provide opportunities for students to ‘bring together’ knowledge developed. This is through extended writing tasks and practical performances. To develop oracy the dance teachers use working with others, audience feedback and reasoning