Arriving on these shores in longships, the Vikings raided villages & worshiped many gods. Sure to evoke dramatic, dynamic and contrasting ideas, this topic will really get your pupils moving!
Your ‘The Vikings’ Teaching Pack for Key Stage 2 Dance
Everything you need to get started:
- 6-week lesson plan
- integrated music tracks
- pupil assessment charts
- curriculum objectives
- learning outcomes
- comprehensive teaching notes
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Outline
Arriving on these shores in longships, the Vikings raided villages & worshiped many gods. Sure to evoke dramatic, dynamic and contrasting ideas, this topic will really get your pupils moving!
Curriculum Objectives:
- Apply & develop a broad range of movement skills
- Learn how to use these in different ways
- Link them to make actions & sequences of movement
- Enjoy communicating and collaborating with each other
- Develop an understanding of how to improve
- Learn how to evaluate and recognise own success
Learning Outcomes:
- Use a variety of movements in isolation and combination
- Develop flexibility, strength, technique, control and balance
- Perform dances using a range of movement patterns
- Compare and evaluate performances against previous ones
- Demonstrate improvement to achieve personal targets
Unit Contents:
Week 4: Viking Gods (continued)
Week 5: Dance, Rehearse & Improve
Week 6: Rehearse, Evaluate & Perform
Week 1: Dragon Ship
Starter
Show a picture of a Dragon Ship. Discuss briefly the Viking era.
Over 1000 years ago Vikings came over from Scandinavia to England, Scotland and even America. They were skilled sailors and talented ship builders. They are known in history as creating strong and beautiful boats which skimmed smoothly through the water. These boats were called long ships or Dragon Ships.
Warm up
‘Dragon Ship’: this is played in the same way as Pirate Ship but adapted to suit the Viking longship.
Begin with you as the Chief and call out orders for the children to follow:
- ‘To the prow’ (front of ship) – run to the front
- ‘To the stern’ (rear of ship) – run to the back
- ‘Hit the keel’ (base of the ship) – lay down on your stomach
- ‘Attention on ship’ – shout “Arggghhhh Chief!!”
- ‘Chief’s quarters’ – run towards the chief
- ‘Clear the deck’ – everyone must have their feet off the floor
- ‘Man the Oars’ – quickly find a partner, sit facing, holding hands and perform rowing actions
- ‘Shark!!’ – everyone run to a designated base
- ‘Sick Turtle’ – fall on to your backs and wave hands and feet in the air
- ‘To the ship’ – move to Chief’s right
- ‘To the Island’ – Chief’s left.
- ‘Count the gold’ – count out aloud e.g. “10 pieces of gold“; use expression in the voice.
Main
Epic Adventure
Children split into two groups:
Group A – Boat makers and oarsmen.
Group B – The sea, moving around the boat.
- Group A first works as a team, sharing movement ideas related to creating a ship. These could be:
- Cutting – (tall oak trees were used to make the keel)
- Pushing and pulling actions
- Lifting and dropping
- Bashing nails
What movements can you think of?
How can you work together to create a good sequence?
- Whilst group A are working on their ideas. Guide group B.
With group B, talk about contrasting movements to represent stormy and calm seas.
Give time for children to offer movement ideas.
We want to create a sea around the boat, how can we do this?
- Whilst group B are working on their sea actions together, guide group A to now practise rowing in unison. Guide children to create two lines of oarsmen. Work together to synchronise the rowing actions.
- Perform the following:
- Group A – build boat
- Group A – man the oars
- Group B – sea enters; moves around the boat
- Group B – moves off stage whilst group 1 reaches the beach
Cool Down
Back and Forth and Round We Go
Traditional Viking Dance: children stand in a circle and spread out, holding hands.
Moving to the left, follow these steps:
Starting with the left leg: step, step, step, kick, step, kick (side-stepping around the circle)
Continue with this step as you travel, moving left round the circle:
Step, step, step, kick, step, kick.
So: left, right, left, kick, right, kick and then repeat: left, right, left, kick, right, kick. Work on moving in unison in time to the music.
Key Vocabulary:
contrast, directional changes, canon, unison
Week 2: Viking Raid
To continue using this plan…