Five years of integrating science and dance: a qualitative inquiry of constructivist elementary school teachers

Abstract

ABSTRACT What can we learn from K-5 science teachers who have integrated science and creative dance for a five-year period? In this paper, the preliminary findings of the qualitative research conducted by a constructivist elementary charter school principal, a university dance professor, and an educational researcher is presented.This research highlights the experiences of science teachers who were given professional development in science/creative dance integration each semester and implemented arts integration strategies in the science classroom. To conclude the five-year period, the six teachers completed a questionnaire and participated in a videotaped interview to document their reflections on the project, Dance of Science Project (DoS), which serves as the primary data source for this paper. An interpretive methodology is used as a framework for interpreting the interviews of the teachers. Of interest is how teachers developed arts integration practices on their own in the classroom without being in partnership with a dance educator, and how arts integration in the science class supported their constructivist teaching practices which include elements of co-operation, autonomy, experimentation, play, and interest. In addition, the article discusses how creative dance aligns with the elements of constructivism.