A New Place for Dance in Schools is a three-year curriculum and professional development initiative for Primary Schools in the London Borough of Camden that builds on the successes of the Learning and Access department’s curriculum-based literacy and science projects.  The programme increases The Place’s role in supporting cross-curricular curriculum development, professional development for teachers and dissemination of best practice.

The programme aims to:

• to improve teachers’ use of dance as part of a multi-sensory and cross-curricular approach to learning and teaching for a range of subjects
• enable teachers to use dance flexibly and independently
• contribute to the development of teaching methodology at Key Stages
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During the 2006-2007 academic year The Place worked with teachers from Argyle Primary School and Torriano Junior School supporting them to deliver cross-curricular movement-based sessions making links with geography, science, and visual art.  It also experimented with using ICT in dance sessions (interactive whiteboards and video cameras) to help pupils gain a deeper understanding of their learning.

In the 2007-2008 academic year the programme will:

• offer eight schools the opportunity to be involved in a ten week CPD project that includes INSET sessions, training and support
• develop web-based resources to support cross-curricular learning and teaching

A New Place for Dance in Schools is generously supported by The Paul Hamlyn Foundation.

Read more about the ideas that underpin cross-curricular learning and teaching