This article considers the related concepts of 'rehearsal' [Harney, Stefano, and Fred Moten. 2013. "The Undercommons: Fugitive Planning & Black Study." Brooklyn: Minor Compositions] and 'catastrophe' [Stengers, Isabelle. 2015. "In Catastrophic Times: Resisting the Coming Barbarism." Translated by Andrew Goffey. London: Open…

Picture book stories are an important tool for teaching creative dance to children. This article presents a dance activity using a picture book story that educators can use to promote movement exploration and creativity.

Ensemble Thinking (ET) is a toolkit of movement scores developed by dance-maker Nina Martin in the 1980s in New York City. The scores of ET arose out of a confluence of Martin's choreographic and improvisational performance practices. The impetus for developing ET was to develop a technical language for creating and discussing improvised dance.…

Grounded in 10 years of critical literacy work in Puerto Rico, the authors engage readers creatively, to share key events in both our experiences as local teachers and as theatre activists in Puerto Rico. Our long-term purpose has been to explore new creative approaches to doing educational research and pedagogies that rupture traditional colonial…

This article considers how the performing arts integrate with research, learning and teaching. In doing so, it addresses the relation between research and performance practice, and the connections between research/practice with learning and teaching. Reference to A/R/Tography is made as a constructivist praxis facilitating integration of these…

Although there is a consensus that it is important to teach jazz and the skill of improvisation inherent within it, many feel unprepared to do so. This article presents a simple way for beginners to improvise through the blues scale and harmonic progression at any present skill level in kindergarten through high school general music coursework.…

Movement can be a powerful force for sensory connection and expression in young children who sometimes don't speak. Their kinaesthetic curiosity naturally experiments with--and forms spontaneous relationships through--touching, sensing, and moving-with the world around them. This article wonders what might happen if children's connective movements…

Learning centers and peer tutoring facilities often need ways to train their staff to work with students who find themselves dealing with anxiety, fear of failure, and many other issues. There is also a need for training in soft skills such as communication and empathy that will help students have a successful college career. This article applies…

The ability to compose music must be taught and practiced. Students need purposeful opportunities to develop their musical thinking. This article presents a number of games and playful work that teachers can use to develop musical thought and lead toward intentional composition.

This essay explores a conceptual view of imagination and its capacity for educational transformation by acknowledging its ineffable, aesthetic, and social qualities. A critical perspective is applied by drawing upon what Giroux (2013) calls the politics of disimagination. Imagination is then put to the pedagogical task of confronting the…

This article discusses approaches to improvisation from a learning perspective, using Irish traditional fiddle music as a case study. Within this genre, concepts of improvisation are largely implicit: many skilled musicians are engaged in spontaneous variation, without particular attention given to the phenomenon and without reference to the term…

Authentic writing allows students to write for audiences other than the teacher for reasons that matter to them and that lead to changing how an audience thinks, feels, or acts. How can teachers prioritize authentic writing instruction and help students become successful writers? Lauren Esposito does this through improv, an art form that develops…

This paper explores the concept of potential through a Deleuzean lens and argues that what is commonly understood as potential is often confused with possibility. It moves through four parts: an introduction exploring the language and context in which potential is ordinarily used in order to uncover underlying presuppositions; the next section…

Improvisation is a fundamental aspect of musicianship and an important pursuit in music education. Children in music classes throughout the world are engaged with improvisation in a variety of modes and settings. Whether singing, physically moving, or playing an instrument, the act of improvising in front of others may raise one's…

This course design integrates the use of contemplative practices, specifically applied improvisational theater, into writing pedagogies to foster mindfulness and critical engagement. It explores the theoretical, neuroscientific, and practical rationale for incorporating contemplative pedagogies in writing classrooms, arguing that applied improv…