Teachers Learn to Go with Flow
Written by: Anna Cearley
San Diego Union-Tribune: January 22, 1999
Escondido--The Chinese dancer turned her staid red fan into a fluttering butterfly. "Don't hold your hand tight," said Lily Cai, a dance choreographer, to her pupils. "You move your hand like a butterfly. It's not like 'I will not let you go'...instead, let it go and it will go so nice."
There were lots of butterflies in various stages of flight as her pupils, 35 teachers, tried to mimic the circles and curves of the master's wrists, and the undulation of her fan.
The stage of the California Center for the Arts, Escondido was so full of fans it could almost take flight.
"She's got a secret flip there that she isn't telling us about," quipped Sharon Ray, a second-grade teacher at Lincoln Elementary in Escondido as she struggled to make her fan into an art form.
As part of a partnership between area school districts and the center, about 140 teachers this week are getting a lesson with Cai, a former principal dancer with the Shanghai Opera House, who now lives in the United States. She choreographs performances for her own dance company based in the San Francisco Bay Area.
The Lily Cai Dance Company is performing at the University of California San Diego on Saturday, and the center had her come to Escondido this week to work with the teachers.
She spent about an hour with teachers yesterday, showing them activities they can lead using fans and long strips of fabric ribbons, and talking about the history behind Chinese dance.
The teachers, from school districts in San Marcos, Escondido and Valley Center, are participants in the center's SUAVE program (Socios Unidos Para Artes Via Educacion, or United Community for Arts Education). It pairs teachers with artists in the community to help them structure curricula that include art. As part of the program, the center sponsors events such as this one where professionals demonstrate ways to incorporate art into the classroom.
"This is great because it helps students to respect each other and their own cultures," said Jackie Zwielich, a first-grade teacher at Lincoln Elementary, about the Chinese dance theme.
The teachers have learned how to use mime techniques to get students to develop their expressiveness and how to stage an impromptu dramatic presentation. Teachers said yesterday that they were looking forward to highlighting the moves taught by Cai during discussions on Chinese New Year in February.
"A child opens up to all kinds of possibilities when they are relaxed, and then they can see that learning is a joy," said Ray. "Lots of my kids are from Mexico, and this shows them that everybody comes to this country with a little bit of culture, and we are all that way."
Chinese dance has evolved over many years, and includes a wide range of styles. There are presentations in which dancers hold feather banners representing shares of food after a day of hunting or fishing. There are military dances in which dancers carry weapons in their hands.
"Every dance is so different and it depends on weather or which area, or what kind of lifestyle the person comes from," said Cai. "Where you are from has a lot to do with the dance style you do...it's very interesting."
Cai highlighted the more modern dances for the teachers. She showed them how to make fabric banners using strips of silk and pieces of wood. The teachers practiced moving the 14 feet of fabric ribbon through the air, in circles, loops and waves.
Teachers saw how the ribbons could be interpreted as dragons, waves or even licorice sticks. And if that's what they saw, imagine what a 6-year-old might see in the streaks that were flashing across the stage. Capturing a student's attention is the first step to getting them excited about learning, several noted.
"This brings in another culture, and it's much more fun and meaningful showed this way," said Kathy Yarush, a second-grade teacher at Valley Center Elementary.