Our 4th grade students have spent several weeks exploring the weight of their bodies in movement. We started with feeling our own weight lifting and falling back into the floor using various parts of the body.
As students became more comfortable with the weight of their own bodies, we explored sharing weight with a partner, creating shapes that would take us off balance, were it not for the return weight of our partner. Obviously, this kind of work requires a lot of trust, and our dancers quickly learned that they must be there for each other in order to be safe!
Next, we added a power dynamic between partners, where one student would be a "leader," and the other would have to follow. We varied the levels of resistance and speed and students reflected upon their emotions during the activity as both a leader and follower. In the closing circle, nearly all students said they would prefer to be the leader in the activity, if they had a choice. We talked about the implications of that preference in movement, and also in the world.
At the end of the unit, we added a prop to our weight explorations: a chair. For students, the chair is a daily tool that can have connotations of rigidity and boredom. It was so liberating to bring this piece of furniture into a movement context. It gave students a chance to reimagine its purpose and experiment with how to use it within their movement improvisations. Gratitude to Nia Womack-Freeman for her support in designing this unit.
Enjoy more of our weight explorations in the video below:
It is so exciting to read all that you have done since doing SI together. You were and continue to be an inspiration. I love your adding the chair in as well.
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