5th Grade Dance Residency

FoCuS Staff Writer

Each spring, the 5th graders get an opportunity to participate in a dance residency with dancer Kelly King. Through a grant from the Maryland State Arts Council, and work with Interact Story Theatre, Kelly comes to FCS for 5 sessions with each 5th-grade performing arts class.

5th-Grader Aubree described the experience this way, “it felt very different because you are leading yourself with your fingers.” Her classmate, Chloe said, “it feels very exciting.”

The experience ties to what students are learning in science. They have begun to learn about how minerals and elements combine, as well as the different types of rocks. Kelly leads the students through arts-integrated lessons connecting the science concepts of the rock cycle to dance. “It is really interesting to see how we can represent rocks with our body” said 5th-Grader Emily.

In their first class, Kelly taught students her BESST definition of dance: “Dance is moving your BODY, with specific EFFORT, making SHAPES, in SPACE, relative to TIME.” Byan Adams, the 5th-Grade science teacher is excited about the project overall. “I love any opportunity for science and arts to collaborate,” he said.

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Located in College Park, MD, Friends Community School is a progressive Quaker K-8 day school, founded on the belief that every child is a valued member of our community. We offer a challenging curriculum imbued with strong values of equality, integrity, community, environmental stewardship, simplicity and peaceful conflict resolution, rooted in our Quaker heritage.

Friends Community School
5901 Westchester Park Drive
College Park, Maryland 20740
301-441-2100