Dance
Dance is a vital and expressive strand of Performing Arts at KWS, providing students with powerful opportunities to communicate ideas, emotions and narratives through movement.
Our Dance curriculum enables students to explore the physical, creative and technical demands of dance while developing confidence, resilience and a strong sense of self-expression. Through practical exploration and performance, students learn to use their bodies as instruments for storytelling, interpretation and artistic expression.
As students progress through the Dance curriculum, they develop core performance skills including physical control, coordination, alignment, flexibility, strength, spatial awareness and musicality. Alongside these technical skills, students build essential transferable skills such as creativity, collaboration, discipline, focus, leadership, confidence and evaluative thinking, supporting success both within Performing Arts and across the wider curriculum.
Curriculum Implementation
Dance at KWS is delivered through a carefully sequenced curriculum that balances technique, creativity and performance. Students regularly experience dance as performers, choreographers and critics, allowing them to develop a broad and well-rounded understanding of the art form. Lessons place emphasis on practical exploration, rehearsal and reflection, ensuring that students are supported to progress physically, creatively and intellectually over time.
Analyse & Explore
In Dance, students analyse and explore a wide range of dance styles, professional works and choreographers from Key Stage 3 through to Key Stage 5 (BTEC Performing Arts). Through watching, discussing and practically exploring dance, students develop an understanding of how movement communicates meaning, mood and intention. They learn to identify key features of choreography, performance quality, use of space, dynamics and relationships between dancers.
Analysis of professional and peer performances supports students in developing a critical vocabulary and a deeper appreciation of dance as an art form. This analytical work provides a strong foundation that informs students’ own choreographic choices and performance development.
Create & Develop
Building on their exploration and analysis, students are challenged to create and develop their own choreography, either individually or as part of an ensemble. Using a range of stimuli, students generate movement material, structure dances and refine their work through rehearsal. Teacher and peer feedback play a key role in supporting students to develop technical accuracy, expressive performance and clear choreographic intention.
In Key Stage 3, this focuses on experimenting with movement, developing basic motifs and communicating ideas clearly to an audience. As students progress into Key Stages 4 and 5, they create more sophisticated choreography, demonstrate greater technical control, and explore complex themes, relationships and choreographic structures.
Share & Evaluate
Performance, reflection and evaluation are integral to the Dance curriculum. Students regularly share their work through informal showings, class performances and recorded assessments. Through discussion, written reflection and watching recorded performances, students evaluate their own work and the work of others, focusing on technique, expression, clarity of intention and overall impact.
This evaluative process enables students to identify strengths, set targets for improvement and apply feedback effectively, ensuring continuous development and progression throughout their Dance journey.
Key Stage Three
In Year 7 the focus is on supporting our students to lay the foundations of collaboration, communication, creativity and expression through introducing our students to the world of theatre. Students will develop a basic understanding of theatre, apply basic acting skills and techniques to communicate meaning along with an intro to development of written analysis and evaluation. The Year 7 Drama curriculum focuses on developing a love of creating, collaborating and excitement for Drama.
With the foundation laid in Year 7, the focus in Year 8 is to challenge the students to question their perception of the world. The Year 8 curriculum expects the students to work at a higher level and develop their Drama skills in order to create and precisely communicate their ideas, whilst having the confidence to take their creativity, performance, communication and collaborative skills to the next level. Students will learn to analyse and evaluate more effectively. Upon completion of the KS3 curriculum, our students will be ready to begin KS4.
For those students who will finish their Drama journey at the end of KS3, they will leave having the skills to effectively communicate, express, collaborate and lead with an understanding appreciation for Theatre and Performance.
Year 7 Curriculum
| Autumn | Just Dance- Waka waka | In this energetic module, students learn the Waka Waka routine created by Just Dance, working collaboratively in groups to fully memorise and perform the choreography.
The focus is on developing both technical and performance skills, with particular attention given to seven key areas: strength, stamina, coordination, musicality, projection, extension, and spatial awareness. Students are encouraged to practise with accuracy, commitment, and teamwork while building confidence in their movement quality. The module culminates in a performance assessment, where students are assessed on confidence, focus, and their effective application of performance skills in a polished group performance. |
| Spring | A Linha Curva & Choreographic devices | In this topic, students are inspired by the professional dance work A Linha Curva, which celebrates Brazilian culture and the excitement of the Rio Carnival. They learn set dance phrases from the piece and then make them their own by experimenting with creative choreographic devices such as canon, repetition, fragmentation and changing formations.
Working in groups, students develop confidence in performance and creativity in choreography, learning how to use dance devices to make routines more exciting for an audience. They also explore the importance of teamwork, timing, and transitions when performing as part of an ensemble. The topic ends with a group performance where students bring together the different devices they have learned. Alongside this, they reflect on their own progress, give feedback to their peers, and discover how dance can be used to celebrate culture and tell a story. |
| Summer | Mad Hatter’s Tea Party | In this module, students study Mad Hatter’s Tea Party by Kate Prince, exploring how narrative and character are communicated through dance.
Students develop their understanding of actions, dynamics, and relationships, focusing on how movement quality and interaction bring a story to life. Using inspiration from the professional work, students work in groups to create their own dances, experimenting with contrasting dynamics and clear character relationships. The module concludes with a group performance, showcasing students’ creativity, teamwork, and expressive performance skills. |
Year 8 Curriculum
| Autumn | Emancipation of Expressionism | In this module, students study the professional work Emancipation of Expressionism by Boy Blue Entertainment. Through this work, students explore the origins and characteristics of different hip hop styles, developing an understanding of how professional choreographers communicate ideas and themes through movement.
Students learn and practise signature motifs from the piece, including the ninja walk, ninja static, chariots of fire, and game over. Using these motifs as a starting point, students work in groups to create their own choreography, carefully considering formations, timing, and a range of choreographic devices. The module concludes with a group performance, allowing students to demonstrate creativity, stylistic accuracy, and effective teamwork. |
| Spring | Capoeira | In this module, students are introduced to the foundations of Capoeira through learning key movements including ginga, esquiva, bênção, meia-lua de frente, cocorinha, rolê, and au.
Students explore the style’s fluid and dynamic movement quality while developing control, balance, and coordination. Working in pairs, they create a Capoeira-inspired duet that focuses on actions, dynamics, use of space, and relationships between performers. The module concludes with a performance, allowing students to demonstrate their understanding of the style, creativity, and ability to work collaboratively in a focused and controlled way. |
| Summer | Dance for TV | In this fun and creative topic, students discover how dance is used in TV adverts to grab attention and sell products. They look at famous examples like the Cadbury’s Gorilla, T-Mobile flash mobs, and Burberry campaigns to see how music, movement, and camera work bring adverts to life.
Working in small groups, students take on different roles — dancers, directors, or camera operators — as they design and film their own dance advert. They choose a product, create a short storyline, choreograph dance moves, and even come up with a catchy tagline. Along the way, they experiment with camera angles, locations, and costumes to make their advert stand out. By the end of the project, students will have filmed and shared their own advert, learning how teamwork, creativity, and performance skills can be combined in a real-world context. |
Key Stage Four
Year 9 – Bridging Year
To bridge the gap between Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4, Dance in Year 9 focuses on developing the physical, creative and analytical skills needed to prepare students for success at GCSE. Students build strong foundations in performance technique, movement quality and expressive skills, while being given regular opportunities to perform both individually and as part of an ensemble.
Students develop their understanding of choreography through exploring professional dance works, set phrases and creative stimuli, allowing them to experiment with movement, structure and intention. Collaboration is a key focus, as students work together to create and refine choreography from more challenging and thought-provoking ideas. Alongside practical work, students begin to develop their ability to analyse and evaluate both their own work and professional dance, using appropriate subject-specific vocabulary.
This bridging year ensures students are confident, physically prepared and creatively curious as they move into GCSE Dance
Year 10 & 11 – GCSE Dance
In Years 10 and 11, Dance supports and prepares students for their final GCSE assessments while developing them as confident performers, thoughtful choreographers and informed dance critics. The curriculum is designed to foster a lifelong appreciation of dance and movement, enriching students both artistically and personally.
Students continue to refine their technical and expressive performance skills while developing original choreography with clear intent. They are encouraged to take creative risks, work independently and collaboratively, and respond thoughtfully to feedback. Alongside practical work, students develop strong analytical and evaluative skills through the study of professional dance works, supporting their written and verbal communication.
Throughout the course, Dance develops essential transferable skills including communication, creativity, collaboration, resilience, leadership, autonomy and confidence — equipping students with the tools they need to succeed, whatever their next steps may be.
Year 9 Curriculum
| Autumn | Technical SKills | Technical skills: Focusing on understanding what actions, space, dynamics and relationships are and how we use them effectively. |
| Spring | Professional Work | Professional work: Analysing a professional dance work honing in on production features and movement components linking to stimulus and choreographic intentions. |
| Summer | Choreography | Choreography: Understanding choreographic devices and how to use them. |
Year 10 Curriculum
| Autumn | Appreciation | Anthology: Study set works A Linha Curva and Infra (AO4)
Safe Dance Practice (AO3) |
| Choreography | Choreography Tasks based on A Linha Curva and Infra (AO2) | |
| Performance | Performance in a Group and Solo Performance (AO1) | |
| Spring | Appreciation | Anthology: Study set works Artificial Things and Emancipation of Expressionism (AO4)
Mental Skills and attributes (AO3) |
| Choreography | Duet choreography Task based on Emancipation of Expressionism (AO2) | |
| Performance | Solo performance Skills developed through Set Phrase Breathe (AO1) | |
| Summer | Appreciation | Anthology: Study set works Shadows and Within Her Eyes (AO4)
Writing knowledge and understanding and skills for performance in 6 mark questions AO3) |
| Choreography | Group Choreography Task based on Shadows (A02) | |
| Performance | Solo performance Skills developed through Set Phrase Shift (AO1) |
Year 11 Curriculum
| Autumn | Appreciation | Written Paper Practice (AO4) |
| Choreography | Choreography Task (AO2) | |
| Performance | Performance in a Group and Solo Performance (AO1) | |
| Spring | Appreciation | Written Paper Practice (AO4) |
| Choreography | Choreography Task (AO2) | |
| Performance | Performance in a Group Performance (AO1) | |
| Summer | Appreciation | Written Paper Practice (AO4) |
