How to Teach Dance Concepts to Early Elementary Students (Ages 5–7)

When children move from preschool dance into early elementary classes, we can begin introducing more challenging movements, longer combinations, and a little more formal dance technique. But that doesn't mean we need to abandon all the imaginative activities they enjoyed when they were younger!

In fact, I think children ages 5–7 are at a wonderful stage for exploring dance concepts through a combination of structured exercises, stories, and creative movement. Many are becoming more coordinated, better able to remember sequences, and more comfortable following directions. They're also beginning to develop the ability to think about how they want to move rather than simply imitating what their teacher demonstrates.

In our preschool classes, we introduce concepts such as body, space, time, and energy through relatively simple movement explorations. Students might stretch into different shapes, follow an imaginary pathway through the forest, or move like animals in response to music. As they reach the early elementary years, we can begin building on those experiences by asking them to combine movements, recognize more specific qualities, and make increasingly independent decisions about their dancing.

And the wonderful thing is that we can continue using imagination to help them learn!

Today, I want to share some of my favorite ways to teach four fundamental dance concepts—body, space, time, and energy—to early elementary students, along with some ideas for making the activities a little more challenging as their skills develop.

How Teaching Dance Concepts Changes in the Early Elementary Years

If you've taught both preschoolers and early elementary students, you've probably noticed that quite a bit can change between ages three and seven. Children are continuing to develop strength, balance, coordination, and body awareness. They're also becoming better able to remember instructions, organize sequences of movements, and participate in activities that require more planning and cooperation with their classmates.

Of course, those changes don't happen all at once. A five-year-old may still need considerable demonstration and repetition, while a seven-year-old may be ready to create and remember a short movement combination with very little assistance. And even within the same class, you'll probably have students at different stages of development.

But in general, we can begin asking early elementary students to do more than simply explore a movement concept. We can encourage them to recognize what they're doing, make choices about how to perform movements, and eventually combine different concepts into short dances of their own.

For example, a preschooler might explore the difference between moving high and low by pretending to be a flower growing toward the sun. An early elementary student could use those same levels to create a sequence that begins on the floor, rises to a standing position, and finishes with a jump. We can also begin asking students to consider how their movements relate to the music and to the other dancers in the room.

We're still teaching through movement and imagination, but gradually adding more structure and complexity as students become ready for it.

1. Body: Developing Greater Control and Coordination

Body awareness is something we begin developing in our earliest dance classes, but it becomes increasingly important as students move into more formal dance instruction.

Think about everything we ask children to do during even a simple ballet combination. They need to maintain proper alignment, coordinate their arms and legs, remember the order of the steps, and move with the music. Before they can do all those things together, they need opportunities to develop control over individual movements and different parts of their bodies.

In our preschool classes, we might ask children to make themselves big or small, stretch their arms like tree branches, or create different shapes with their bodies. With early elementary students, we can begin asking for more specific movements and greater control.

Activity: Body Part Isolation Challenge

One activity I like for this age group is challenging students to move one part of their bodies while keeping the others relatively still.

For example, begin by asking students to stand in a comfortable position and move only their shoulders. Can they lift and lower them without moving their entire bodies? Next, ask them to move their arms, wrists, or fingers. You can continue through different parts of the body, allowing students to explore which movements come easily and which require more concentration.

Once they're comfortable with individual movements, begin combining them. Perhaps students lift their shoulders, stretch their arms outward, bend their knees, and finish by reaching toward the ceiling. Can they remember the sequence and repeat it in the same order?

You can also ask students to create their own short combinations. Give them three or four body parts to include and allow them to decide how each one will move.

This gives children opportunities to practice coordination, body awareness, and movement memory while also encouraging them to make creative choices.

And if you want to make the activity more imaginative, perhaps your students are robots learning how to move! At first, they can only move one part of their bodies at a time. As they become more advanced robots, they begin combining movements until they're able to dance using their whole bodies.

Build on Body Shapes

Another way to develop body awareness is to revisit the shapes students explored in preschool, but ask for a little more precision and variety.

For example, rather than simply asking students to make a star shape, challenge them to create three different stars. Could one be tall and narrow, another wide, and another close to the floor?

You can also begin introducing the idea of symmetrical and asymmetrical shapes. Ask students to create a shape that looks the same on both sides of their bodies, then try making a shape in which their arms or legs are positioned differently.

I wouldn't spend too much time giving technical explanations of symmetry, particularly with younger students in this age group. Instead, demonstrate a few examples and allow them to explore the differences physically.

These activities can become more challenging as students develop, particularly when you begin asking them to remember a sequence of shapes or transition smoothly from one position to another.

2. Space: Combining Pathways, Directions, and Levels

By the early elementary years, many children have become more comfortable traveling through space and recognizing basic directions and levels. They've probably spent quite a bit of time moving forward and backward, following straight and curved pathways, and exploring high and low movements during their preschool classes.

Now we can begin combining those concepts and asking students to make more independent decisions about where and how they're going to move.

This is also a good age to begin developing greater spatial awareness in relation to other dancers. Children may be ready for simple partner activities, group formations, and movement sequences that require them to travel along particular pathways without losing track of where they're supposed to go.

Activity: Pathway Adventures

One of my favorite ways to teach pathways is to turn the classroom into an imaginary adventure.

Perhaps your students are explorers traveling through a jungle or searching for treasure on a mysterious island. To reach their destination, they need to follow several different pathways.

Begin by demonstrating a straight pathway, a curved pathway, and a zigzag pathway. For students who are ready, you can also introduce spirals. Then ask them to travel through each pathway using a familiar movement such as marching, galloping, or skipping.

Once students understand the differences, begin combining the pathways into a sequence. Perhaps they travel along a straight path, curve around an imaginary mountain, zigzag through a forest, and finish by spiraling toward the treasure.

You can use floor markers or cones to help students recognize the pathways at first. As they become more comfortable, gradually remove the visual markers and encourage them to remember the patterns themselves.

For an additional challenge, allow students to create their own pathway adventures. They might draw their pathways on paper first or simply demonstrate them for the class to follow.

This is a wonderful opportunity to begin introducing simple choreographic decisions. Students aren't just moving through space. They're thinking about where they want to travel and how to organize their movements.

Introduce Partner Pathways

You can also use simple partner activities to help students become more aware of how they move in relation to other dancers.

For example, have one student create a pathway while her partner follows. Then switch roles so both children have an opportunity to lead.

You might also ask partners to begin facing one another, travel away from each other, and then return to their starting positions. Can they do this without bumping into one another? Can they maintain an appropriate distance as they move?

These activities give students opportunities to practice spatial awareness, cooperation, and following or leading movements.

Of course, some five-year-olds may still need quite a bit of guidance during partner activities. I'd begin with very simple directions and gradually introduce more complicated movement patterns as students become comfortable working together.

3. Time: Developing Rhythm and Musicality

Music is one of the most important parts of dance education, and I think the early elementary years are a wonderful time to begin developing greater rhythmic awareness.

In our preschool classes, we often start with simple musical concepts such as fast and slow, starting and stopping, or recognizing changes in tempo. By ages 5–7, many children are ready to begin exploring a steady beat, simple rhythmic patterns, and movement sequences that correspond to musical phrases.

Of course, some children will naturally find moving to a beat easier than others. And even students who love music may have difficulty coordinating their movements with a particular rhythm.

That's why I like to introduce musical concepts through activities that allow children to hear, feel, and move with the music rather than relying entirely on counting.

Activity: Musical Statues With a Twist

If your students enjoyed freeze dance when they were younger, you can continue using it in early elementary classes while adding more musical challenges.

Begin with the familiar activity of moving while the music plays and freezing when it stops. Once students are comfortable, introduce a particular movement they need to perform when they hear a musical cue.

For example, they might march to a steady beat while the music plays, then freeze in a balance when it stops. Or perhaps they're exploring a magical castle and need to change movements whenever the music changes.

You can also challenge students to recognize strong beats or musical accents. They might jump on a particular beat, change direction at the beginning of a new phrase, or perform a movement sequence that repeats with the music.

For younger students, I'd keep the musical cues obvious and the movements familiar. As their listening and coordination improve, you can gradually introduce more complicated rhythmic patterns.

And don't feel that you need to turn every musical activity into a counting exercise. Learning to recognize and respond to music through movement is valuable, even before students can consistently count musical phrases.

Activity: Create a Movement Pattern

Another activity I like is asking students to create a short movement sequence that follows a steady beat.

For example, begin with four marches followed by four jumps. Demonstrate the pattern and have students practice it with the music. Once they're comfortable, ask them to repeat the sequence several times.

You can then change the movements or invite students to suggest their own combinations. Perhaps they want four tiptoe steps followed by four claps, or two jumps followed by two turns.

For older or more experienced students, you can introduce the idea of an eight-count phrase and ask them to organize their movements within it.

You might even divide the class into small groups and have each group create a short movement pattern. Then let the groups demonstrate their sequences while the rest of the class watches.

This gives students opportunities to practice rhythm, movement memory, and simple choreographic organization while beginning to connect the structure of their dancing with the structure of the music.

4. Energy: Exploring Movement Qualities and Expression

Energy is one of my favorite dance concepts to explore with children because it allows us to move beyond simply performing steps and begin thinking about how those movements are performed.

Even preschoolers can recognize the difference between a butterfly floating gently through the air and an elephant stomping across the ground. But as children grow older, we can begin introducing more specific movement qualities and asking students to make deliberate choices about how they want to move.

For example, we can explore movements that are light or strong, sharp or smooth, and free-flowing or controlled. We can also ask students to think about how different movement qualities can help communicate a feeling or tell a story.

And I think this is a wonderful introduction to the expressive side of dance.

Activity: Mood Dance

Begin by choosing several pieces of music with contrasting moods or qualities.

Perhaps the first is soft and gentle, while the next is lively and energetic. Another might sound mysterious or dramatic. Ask students to listen briefly before they begin moving and think about how the music makes them feel.

Then invite them to create movements that match what they hear.

For example, a gentle piece of music might inspire smooth, flowing arm movements or quiet traveling steps. A more dramatic selection might encourage strong, sharp movements. You can ask students to explore how their movements change when the music changes.

After each selection, spend a little time discussing what they noticed. Did they move quickly or slowly? Were their movements smooth or sharp? Did they use large movements or small ones?

You don't need a lengthy discussion, but these questions can help children begin recognizing the choices they're making.

For older students, you might ask them to perform the same movement in several different ways. Can they walk across the room lightly, almost as though they're floating? Can they repeat the walk with stronger, heavier steps? What happens when they change from smooth movements to sharp, sudden ones?

These experiences help students recognize that movement quality can change the way an audience perceives a dance, even when the steps themselves remain the same.

Activity: Tell a Story Through Movement

Another way to explore energy is to ask students to communicate a short story or situation using different movement qualities.

Perhaps they're explorers who begin their journey excited and full of energy. Then they enter a mysterious forest, where their movements become slower and more cautious. Finally, they discover a beautiful castle and celebrate with joyful, energetic dancing.

You can guide younger students through the story, giving them ideas for how their movements might change along the way.

For older students, allow them to decide which movements and qualities will best communicate each part of the story. They might work individually, with partners, or in small groups to create a short dance.

This gives students opportunities to experiment with expression and begin making choreographic choices based on the story they're trying to tell.

And don't forget that students may interpret the same music or story differently. That's part of the creative process! As long as their movements are appropriate for the activity and they're exploring the concepts you've introduced, there doesn't need to be one correct answer.

Combining Dance Concepts Through Beginning Choreography

One of the things I particularly enjoy about teaching early elementary students is that we can begin asking them to combine different dance concepts into short movement sequences of their own.

In preschool, children may have explored body shapes, pathways, musical timing, and movement qualities through separate activities. Now we can begin bringing those ideas together.

For example, imagine asking students to create a short dance about traveling through an enchanted forest.

They might begin with a particular body shape, then travel along a curved pathway. Next, they could perform a series of jumps in time with the music before finishing with a soft, flowing movement as they arrive at a magical clearing.

Within that short sequence, they've explored body, space, time, and energy.

Of course, I wouldn't expect a five-year-old to create a complicated dance independently. We can begin with very simple choreographic challenges, such as choosing three movements and putting them in a particular order.

As students grow older and become more comfortable, we can gradually add more requirements. Perhaps their dance needs to include two different pathways, a change in level, and contrasting movement qualities.

You could also allow students to work in pairs or small groups, giving them opportunities to discuss their ideas and practice working together.

I think this is a wonderful way to help children begin understanding choreography. They're not simply memorizing a dance someone else created. They're learning to make decisions about how movements can be organized to communicate an idea.

And I love that we're still using the same dance concepts they began exploring as preschoolers, just in a more advanced way.

Keep Imagination, but Increase the Challenge

One thing I would caution against is assuming that children no longer need imaginative activities simply because they've entered the early elementary years.

Five-, six-, and seven-year-olds still love stories, characters, adventures, and opportunities to pretend. And while some children may begin showing greater interest in more formal dance technique, others will remain especially enthusiastic about creative movement.

I don't think we need to choose between those approaches.

We can introduce more challenging movement concepts and technical expectations while continuing to use imagery and storytelling to make our lessons interesting.

For example, instead of simply asking students to explore a curved pathway through an imaginary forest, we might challenge them to remember a sequence of several pathways. Rather than asking them to move like different animals, we might have them create a dance that combines contrasting movement qualities.

The imaginative theme remains familiar, but the level of coordination, memory, and independent decision-making we're asking for has increased.

And because children are still developing at different rates, we can adjust the difficulty of these activities according to the students in front of us.

Some classes may be ready to create short group dances, while others will benefit from more guided movement explorations. Both approaches can be valuable when they're appropriate for the students we're teaching.

Building a Foundation for More Formal Dance Training

As children move through the early elementary years, many will begin participating in more structured dance classes. In ballet, for example, they may start learning more formal exercises, refining basic technique, and gradually developing the coordination needed for longer combinations.

But the movement concepts we've been teaching since preschool remain important.

Body awareness helps students understand alignment and coordinate different parts of their bodies. Spatial awareness becomes increasingly important as they travel through the room, change directions, and perform movements alongside other dancers. Musicality helps them coordinate their steps with the music, while an understanding of energy and movement qualities contributes to artistic expression.

These aren't concepts we teach once and then move on from. They're ideas students will continue exploring throughout their dance education.

And I think that's one of the reasons it's worth spending time on them in the early years.

When we introduce body, space, time, and energy through developmentally appropriate activities, we're giving children opportunities to explore the foundations of dance before asking them to apply those concepts within more complicated technique.

As students grow, we can gradually introduce more detailed terminology, greater technical precision, and increasingly challenging combinations. But their earlier experiences with these movement concepts give us something to build on.

Let Your Students Become More Independent Dancers

I think one of the biggest changes we can make as children move from preschool into early elementary dance is giving them more opportunities to make decisions about their own movements.

When they're younger, we spend quite a bit of time demonstrating exercises, leading imaginative activities, and helping students understand what we're asking them to do. As they grow older, we can begin stepping back a little and allowing them to contribute more of their own ideas.

That might mean asking students to create a movement sequence, choose a pathway, or decide how to express a particular feeling through dance. It might mean having them work with a partner to develop a short combination or perform a familiar movement in a new way.

Of course, we'll still teach technique, demonstrate exercises, and provide plenty of guidance. But we can also help students begin thinking more independently about their dancing.

And I think that's such an important part of dance education.

We want children to learn correct movements and develop strong technical foundations, but we also want them to understand that dance is an art form. It's something they can use to express ideas, tell stories, and create movements of their own.

When we continue developing the fundamental concepts of body, space, time, and energy throughout the early elementary years, we can help students become more coordinated and technically capable while also encouraging their creativity.

And we can still make the experience fun and imaginative along the way!