Dear parents and friends,
One of the incredible things about New School-West is the various work in which groups of children participate and explore. I am lucky to lead a creative movement group again this year after a very successful pilot year when I was still a parent at NSW (Marcello’s mom). This year, I am partnering with Sam to bring movement investigations to the students. Each Thursday, I come to work in the afternoons for two classes, one from each wing. With the West Wing, we cycle through the entire school giving each child a one time experience to see who gravitates toward this kind of experience. With the East Wing we started with a group that will work for six weeks and will then create a new group. Our goal is, that by the end of the year every child has worked in the movement group.
These classes are an exploration with our bodies as a means to gain agility, self-awareness, vocabulary to describe and understand our bodies, and knowledge of ourselves in space and in relation to others. We explore space, shape, velocity, time, levels, size and more through moving our bodies. To accomplish this goal, we play a lot of “dance games” that encourage the children to think, make choices for themselves, and interact with friends.
I believe that the vocabulary of looking at, talking about, and executing movement has many applications to our every day life. The word and idea of SPACE, for instance, can lead to explorations moving through and across a room and discussions about the planets and stars in space. You might need to ask a friend for more space or more room around your body to feel safe or you might create negative space within body shape sculpture. Movement is a language, a way to communicate and make relationship and very much a part of the Hundred Languages of Children that we talk about when studying the Reggio approach to learning.
Sam will let parents know when your child is part of a group. Please feel free to contact me directly with any questions you might have. ilaanini@ca.rr.com. We are both available to talk about our class experiences and will share them on the blog or through documentations on our walls.
I look forward to meeting you all,
Sincerely,
Ilaan
BIO – Ilaan Egeland Mazzini is a performing artist, movement educator and family programs specialist. She has performed, taught and toured throughout the US. As Head of Family Programs at the Skirball Cultural Center she curated and facilitated interactive family events, performances, and workshops focusing on culture and community. Currently she organizes and leads Family Dance Jams around the city, teaches movement at NSW, works with SmartSpace Art Camps and is the Art and Movement teacher at the new WISH Elementary Charter School.