Student Well-Being Video

Teachers, Try This: Use Dance to Boost Engagement and Learning

By Kaylee Domzalski & Jaclyn Borowski — February 13, 2025 2:34
Members of eMotion Breakdance bring rehearsal outside during a fire drill at Bellaire High School on Nov. 21, 2024, in Houston.

Paris Kent, the dance director at Bellaire High School in Houston, has sent her students into physics classes to help students learn about the rotation of an axis through the movement of their bodies, demonstrating how a person’s size impacts the speed of the rotation. It’s just one way Kent works to incorporate dance across the curriculum.

But the methods for utilizing movement are just as plentiful as the reasons for doing so—from giving students an opportunity to share elements of their culture, creating connections between students and their teachers, and increasing student engagement.

Here, Kent shares how teachers can incorporate dance and movement into their classrooms in small, time-effective ways.

Kaylee Domzalski is a video producer for Education Week.
Jaclyn Borowski is the director of photography and videography for Education Week.

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Katelyn Webster, from left, Eryn Miller, Grace Bischoff, and Hanna Pearsall take notes as Amanda Pierman teaches her upper school science class at The Benjamin School in North Palm Beach, Fla., on Feb. 10, 2025. Pierman uses AI to help teach her classes and the student’s computers mirror the main screen. They are then able to answer questions live using their computers.
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