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Learn to call contra dances with me!

My First Half Evening

March 28, 2023 / / 0 Comments

8 months ago, I called my first set at Saint Matthias Hall. It did not go well. Anne, my mentor had to come onstage with me and help me start the dance, and after the dance I cried on the drive home, thinking I had messed up my only chance.

Last weekend, I called a half evening at Saint Matthias Hall. It wasn’t perfect, but it was entirely functional.

Calling with the Odd Hack Band at Saint Matthias Hall

My Dances

I started by calling the beginner lesson, teaching basic contra moves using Larks and Robins terminology. As part of the lesson, I called Essex Reel by Tony Parkes. That was an easy and familiar (if not very interesting) dance.

Our first full dance of the evening was Orono Special by Tony Parkes. It was a little too similar to Essex for my taste. Next time, I will try something a little more dynamic as a first dance.

Then, we moved on to Simplicity Swing by Becky Hill, Hello Nurse by Maia McCormic, and Butter by Gene Hubert. These dances all emphasized chains, and I used them to introduce my dancers to swings, chains, and heys. Butter was a new dance for me, and it fell apart a bit because the band played a 3 part tune rather than a 2 part tune.

We ended the half of the dance with With Thanks to the Dean by Steve Zakon-Anderson. This is a dance that I particularly like because it is an easy double progression by a caller I really admire.

I also planned to call an adapted version of Petronella, but I didn’t end up having time for 6 dances.

Feedback

I was approached by quite a few dancers afterward, who told me that they appreciated my dance choice. I specifically got good feedback on my last few dances.

Talking to the Odd Hack Band, I learned that my cues were often late for ending tunes, something I am hoping to work on in the future.

Reflections on My Calling Journey

I have grown so much throughout my inquiry process, but I am still right at the beginning of my calling career.

When I started this inquiry, I wasn’t sure whether calling was something that would “stick” for me. I wondered if it might just be a phase. Now, I see how much I can give back to the contra community by being someone who knows how to call and who can step in and call a dance.

I have also seen how much power callers have to make positive change in contra communities. Callers can create dances wherever they are, a fact that gives me so much joy. I wish I had learned to call earlier, so I could have brought contra to all the places I have been.

Moving Forward

This summer, I’m working to organize a contra dance at the First Unitarian Church of Victoria so that the Victoria contra community has contra in the summer.

I am also traveling to New England in June and calling three dances with my best friend, ex-roommate, and the woman who taught me to dance.

Find a partner for another dance and take hands four from the top.

Sticky Post
By Kelly Sikkema

Week 3 Reflection – Screencasting

February 7, 2023 / / 0 Comments

This week, we learned to do screencasting using Screencastify, a program that allows you to record your shared screen as well as your narration for your website tour. I chose to use Screencastify to create a virtual tour of three websites that I am using in my contra dance calling journey. Here is the video I created.

Resources for Contra Dance Callers by Maya Roe

Screencastify is a fun tool, but I don’t really think that I would use it with my students. The place I could really imagine using this tool is with parents. Sometimes parents need a little help navigating websites or processes, such as applying for a background check or registering for the parent-teacher meetings. I think that creating a simple Screencastify video would be a great way to make those processes easier.

Calling with Friends

February 6, 2023 / / 0 Comments
Photo by Maya Roe

On February 5th, Anne Glover, a local caller, organized a caller practice session in a local hall. The practice session had about 15 dancers and 5 callers who are working on honing their craft. For two of the callers, it was their first time calling. It felt nice to work with some people who are just starting out because I could see how far I have already come in my calling journey in less than a year!

I called two dances that I have learned recently: Orono Special and Petronella. Here are my reflections on how those dances went.

Orono Special

Orono Special is a simple Tony Parkes dance. I learned it because I had a hunch that Anne might ask me to call the first dance of the program. And I was right. It is a very easy dance to call and all of the dancers (including our one beginner) picked up on it early. My one criticism is that it is a little boring. Hopefully, in the next caller practice session, I can choose a slightly more stimulating first dance to try.

Petronella

Petronella is a traditional dance. It was the first dance that used a figure where minor sets (groups of four dancers) balance their ring and move one place to the right every eight counts. In contemporary dances, this figure is actually called a “Petronella turn.” I enjoyed learning an adaptation of a dance that is considered a classic. There was a moment during the walk-through when the dancers got confused, and I was proud that I was able to work with them through that moment of confusion and resolve the issues.

Essex Reel

On top of the dances that I called independently, I also helped one of my friends start calling a dance using some of my dance cards. I brought the dancers through the walk through and called the beginning of the dance before passing it off to a friend. It was nice to do that because it was a good exercise in being adaptable.

Over all, I am looking forward to call for another caller practice with the same people next week. We are hoping that next week we will have a live band, which will be great because I need to work on communicating with musicians.

How Can We Meaningfully Incorporate Recording Programs Across the Grades

March 28, 2023 / / 0 Comments
A child with wireless headphones on speaking into a professional-looking microphone. The child's face has intentional blurring for privacy.
Photo by Murry Lee

Introduction

Inquiry-based learning is a powerful tool for helping students develop critical thinking skills and become more engaged in their learning. One way to incorporate this approach into the classroom is through the use of audio recording technology. Audio recording technology provides a way for students to capture their thoughts, ideas, and reflections in a way that is both personal and meaningful. Whether it’s using programs like Audacity and Garageband or using personal devices, this post, we will explore how teachers can meaningfully incorporate audio recording technology across grade levels from early elementary through middle school. We will also examine the pros and cons of using audio recording technology in schools, things to be mindful of as educators, and provide some ideas for different activities/applications in the classroom. But first, what is Audacity and Garageband?

Audacity Tutorial

Audacity is a free, open-source audio editing software that is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux. It is a powerful tool that can be used to record and edit audio, including podcasts, interviews, and music. Here is a quick tutorial on how to use Audacity:

To download, visit https://www.audacityteam.org/

Garage Band Tutorial

Garage Band is a popular digital audio workstation software that is available on Mac and iOS devices. It can be used to create and edit music, podcasts, and sound effects. Here is a quick tutorial on how to use Garage Band:

Pros/Cons and Things To Keep in Mind

An informational table with two columns labelled Pros and Cons. The spaces below are blank.
Photo by: Putukas01

While audio recording technology has many benefits, it also has some drawbacks. Here are some pros and cons to consider when incorporating audio recording technology into the classroom:

Pros:

  • Encourages self-reflection and critical thinking
  • Enhances student engagement and motivation
  • Allows for personalized learning and self-expression
  • Provides opportunities for collaboration and peer feedback
  • Develops communication and presentation skills

Cons:

  • Requires access to technology and may be expensive
  • May be distracting or disruptive in the classroom
  • May require additional training for students and teachers
  • May present privacy and security concerns
  • May not be accessible for all students with disabilities

Educators should keep the following things in mind when incorporating audio recording technology in the classroom:

  1. Accessibility: Ensure that the technology is accessible for all students, including those with disabilities. Consider providing additional support for students who need it.
  2. Safety and Privacy: Be mindful of safety and privacy concerns when recording and sharing audio recordings. Set clear guidelines for students and obtain consent from parents or guardians if necessary.
  3. Training: Provide adequate training and support for both students and teachers in using the technology effectively and responsibly.
  4. Assessment: Consider how audio recordings will be assessed and evaluated. Develop clear criteria for assessment and provide feedback to students on their work.
  5. Integration: Integrate audio recording technology into the curriculum in a meaningful way. Consider how it can support and enhance learning outcomes in different subject areas.
  6. Time Management: Plan ahead and allow sufficient time for students to create and edit their recordings. Consider how much time will be needed for training, recording, editing, and sharing.
  7. Technical Support: Ensure that there is adequate technical support available in case of technical difficulties or issues that may arise during recording or editing.

Classroom Applications

You’ve weighed the pros and cons and have decided you want to use audio recording in your classroom. But, what can you actually do with it when you have a grade 2 class? What about a grade 8 class? Lots! We have sorted some example activities into Early Elementary(K-2), Upper Elementary(3-5), and Middle School(6-8) and are providing 5 examples for each below. This list of just some of the cool things you can do with audio recording across the grades:

Early Elementary (K-2)

  1. Vocabulary Building: Students can create an audio book report by recording themselves summarizing a book they have read and discussing the vocabulary words they learned.
  2. Cultural Exploration: Students can create an audio map by recording themselves describing the different parts of a map and the places that can be found there.
  3. Literature Study: Students can create an audio storybook by recording themselves reading a story they have written and adding illustrations or animations to accompany the audio.
  4. Music and Movement: Students can create an audio dance party by recording themselves introducing different songs and leading their classmates in dance and movement activities.
  5. Poetry Reading: Students can create an audio poetry slam by recording themselves reciting their own poems or poems they have learned and adding sound effects to enhance the performance.

Upper Elementary (3-5)

  1. Science Experiments: Students can create a podcast series where they conduct and report on their own scientific experiments, discussing their hypotheses, methods, and results.
  2. Creative Writing: Students can create an audio drama by recording themselves acting out different parts of a story and using sound effects and music to create atmosphere and tension.
  3. Public Speaking: Students can create a mock news show by recording themselves delivering news stories and features about different topics, such as sports, entertainment, or local events.
  4. Language Learning: Students can create an audio language lesson by recording themselves teaching basic phrases and vocabulary in a foreign language.
  5. Collaborative Storytelling: Students can create an audio chain story by recording themselves telling a story one sentence at a time and passing the recording to the next student to continue the story.

Middle School (6-8)

  1. Speech and Debate: Students can create a podcast series where they analyze and discuss different persuasive speeches and debates from history and current events.
  2. Virtual Field Trips: Students can create an audio documentary by recording interviews with experts and people from different cultures and locations, and using sound effects and music to create an immersive audio experience.
  3. History and Social Studies: Students can create an audio timeline by recording themselves discussing the key events and people of a particular historical period and adding sound effects and music to create an engaging audio narrative.
  4. Current Events: Students can create an audio editorial by recording themselves discussing and analyzing different news stories and events and offering their own opinions and insights.
  5. Creative Writing: Students can create an audio poetry collection by recording themselves reciting their own poems or poems they have discovered and adding sound effects and music to enhance the mood and tone of the poems.

Programming With Scratch and Micro:bit

March 14, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Beyond a class I took about coding in R in my undergrad, I have not done much with coding or programming. However, this week, two of my classes had workshops on the topic. In our science teaching course, volunteers from Science Venture came into our classroom to do a workshop on programming with Micro:bit. Simultaneously, we worked on programming with Scratch in this class.

If I had the resources in my class to do programming, I would integrate these programs into my curriculum in a few different ways.

Connections to Important Tech

In my class, I would like to help my students understand all of the simple computers that help us in our day-to-day lives. When we worked with Micro:bit, I was struck by the features that allowed us to program the Micro: bit into a compass that would display certain messages when pointed in the cardinal directions.

Immediately, I started thinking about the ways that we could use this tech to explore the tech that has become ubiquitous in wilderness adventure like transceivers that backcountry skiers use for safety in avalanche country or GPS devices that allow expeditions to send out an SOS signal from areas where there is no cell phone service.

Gratitude Through Programming

One of my core beliefs in education is that students will be more grateful for the technology and resources they have when they know the work that goes into creating those resources.

I think that it would be a great curricular connection to explore GPS units just like we would explore any other outdoor technology like skis, stoves, or tents. If we know the people who created this technology and the work that they put into making it available for us, we can fully grasp the privilege that comes with using these technologies.

A photo of the two dances that I called at the March 11th Victoria Contra. Heart of Glass and Awesome Double Progression

Victoria Contra Redemption

March 14, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Last fall, I tried to call my first guest set at the Victoria Contra. There were many issues with the set, but suffice to say, it did not go well. I ended up having to bring the experienced caller back onstage to support me.

This was why I was a little nervous when I was invited to call a guest set at the Victoria Contra Dance. However, I think that I have fully redeemed myself in the Victoria Contra community now, and I am feeling excited to call half of a dance on March 25th.

My Dances

A photo of the two dances that I called at the March 11th Victoria Contra. Heart of Glass and Awesome Double Progression

Awesome Double Progression – Donna Calhoun

This was the first dance I called. It is a very simple glossary dance except for the fact that it is a double progression (meaning that couples progress twice down the set in one round of the dance). I chose this dance because it is an easy way to introduce double progressions, something that I am trying to include more and more in my repertoire.

A video of Awesome Double Progression

Heart of Glass – Carey Ravitz

I chose this dance because it has different directions for the different roles, meaning that it was a good chance to teach Larks and Robins as roles, something that I am pushing for more and more.

Both of these dances have some tricky elements while still being relatively forgiving. It was my first time teaching a hey, which I think went relatively well all things considered, although there were some inexperienced dancers who seemed to have a little bit of a hard time with the figure.

A video of Heart of Glass

Larks and Robins

This was the first Victoria Contra where I tried calling “Larks and Robins” for the roles rather than “Ladies and Gents.”

I reminded my dancers before both dances who would be dancing the “Lark” role and who would be dancing the “Robin” role.

I heard a little bit of grumbling about the change, but most people caught on quite quickly, and I feel confident that Victoria Contra Dance is ready for the shift from Gents and Ladies to Larks and Robbins.

I had one dancer come to me at the end of the dance and ask me very earnestly about the switch from Gents and Ladies to Larks and Robins, and we had a good productive conversation about inclusive dancing and practicing new roles.

I always appreciate when dancers come to me after dances with genuine questions, compliments, or thoughts about how specific dances work.

Lessons

  • Hold the mic at a consistent distance from my mouth. Handheld mics can help with this when you want to call and signal the band at once.
  • Remind dancers of their role at the beginning of every dance.
  • Having a teaching script is really helpful. Print it up.
Hands hovering over a laptop keyboard, poised to type.
by Glenn Carstens-Peters

Week 7 Reflection – Jesse Miller

March 7, 2023 / / 0 Comments

I really appreciated that we had the chance to talk to Jesse Miller about our roles as teachers supporting students in their relationships with technology. Although I did not agree with all of Jesse’s conclusions, I appreciated how much experience he had in the field and how candidly he spoke about these issues. Here are my three favorite things he talked about.

Teacher – Student Interactions Online

In his talk, he shared a story about a teacher who accidentally saw one of their students on an online dating site. As someone who does not use online dating sites and who teaches young children, I had never considered that this could happen. After this conversation, I started to think more about places where my students might see my online presence. I am fairly conservative about my online presence, except when it comes to the contra dancing community, so I don’t think I have much to worry about.

Students and Social Media

I am very concerned about having good conversations with students about social media. Jesse Miller advocated heavily for talking to students about social media, but he was not very specific in the ways that teachers should start this conversation. Since his presentation, I wanted to get a better sense of how teachers broach this topic, so I found a few good resources online. This article highlights a framework for parents talking to children about social media that I think would be helpful for teachers.

Infographic by: Sophia Choukas-Bradley

Digital Tech Addiction

In his Ted Talk, Jesse Miller spoke some about how parents use tech to placate young children. However, he did not talk very much about the implications that this parenting strategy can have on kids in the long run.

After this presentation, I went on to listen to a podcast by MindShift on tech addiction that helped me fill in some of the gaps on the long term impacts of tech as a strategy to help kids regulate their feelings.

I am very grateful that Jesse Miller came into our classroom and started these conversations between our classmates because I think that they will make us better teachers in the end.

Corvallis Contra Weekend!

February 24, 2023 / / 0 Comments

On February 17th to 19th, a group of contra dancers from across North America gathered in Corvallis, Oregon to dance to Elixer and Countercurrent. I was one of them.

The magic of dance weekends.

Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, dance weekends were one of the most important parts of my social fabric.

Why? In isolated areas of North America, contra dance can sometimes feel like a very small (and sometimes a bit inbred) community. You dance with the same people week after week, and it can be easy to forget that contra dance is a giant community that spans from coast to coast of North America, full of dancers of many ages, races, and genders.

Dance weekends are the perfect antidote to this feeling. To attend a dance weekend, dancers will squeeze into small cars with near strangers and drive unreasonable distances. When they get to the weekend, they might have many friends or they might be a stranger. In either case, by the end of the weekend, they will have a whole group of new friends.

Corvallis Contra Weekend

During reading break, I drove with two of my best friends down to Corvallis, Oregon to dance at the Corvallis Contra Weekend. This was my first contra weekend since the pandemic and I was so excited. Two of my favorite bands, Elixir and Countercurrent, were playing the dance, and I was excited to meet and dance with some of the best dancers on the West Coast.

Although I hardly knew any other dancers at the weekend, I quickly got to know a few of the local callers and younger dancers.

Dancing to Elixir at Corvallis Contra Dance Weekend. I meant to take more videos, but I found that I didn’t want to miss a single dance!

Lessons From Corvallis

At Corvallis, I had the chance to connect with lots of contra dancers and callers from the Pacific Northwest and beyond. From all of my conversations with them, I came away with a few lessons about the PNW contra community.

  • There are more dance weekends, dances, bands, and dancers on the West Coast than I thought!
  • It is so helpful to dance with dancers who are much better than me. I need to seek out opportunities to go to challenging dances whenever I can.
  • It is quite easy to tell whether experienced callers are interested in mentoring/ supporting beginning callers or not. Many are!
  • If you want to practice anti-racist and gender-free calling, you need to take that int account as you choose mentors.
  • Being on an island makes learning to call more tough because there are not many gigs on an island.
  • People at contra weekends are unbelievably generous. They will help you find somewhere to stay if you need it.

Gotta keep your strength up when you are dancing for a whole weekend!

An image of an English Country Dance from the movie Emma
From the Chattanooga Traditional Dance Society

English Country Dancing – Contra’s Dorky Mom

February 14, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Contra dancing, as I mentioned in one of my earlier posts, is born out of English Country Dancing. Many of the figures in contra are directly copied from English Country Dancing. However, they have been adapted over the years.

I decided that I need to try English Country Dancing to develop a better theoretical understanding of the origins of Contra. This is why I was excited when I had the opportunity to join a group of English Country Dancers three weeks ago. I have been to three English Country Dances in Victoria and here are my thoughts.

English Country Dancing is Visual

In contra dancing, the cultural norm is not to worry too much about how the dances look to an observer. Of course, people employ lots of flourishes and many people dance beautifully, but this dancing is more to impress the other dancers in your minor set rather than to impress an outside audience.

In English Country dancing, dancers are sometimes performing in small groups for a large audience, which means that callers spend more time emphasizing hand placement, footwork, and figure symmetry. This cultural difference comes from the culture of “balls” in English Country Dancing, where dancers come together in period dress and dance. If you’ve ever seen Pride and Prejudice, congratulations, you’ve seen an English Country Dance ball.

An image of people in period dress English Country Dancing.
Photo from The Epoch Times

English Country Dance Is Complex

Trying English Country Dance is making me into a better dancer. Many of the figures in English Country Dance are essentially more complex variations on Contra figures.

For example, in contra dancing, the only hey figure you will see in most dances is a hey for four. In English Country Dancing, I have encountered heys for three, dolphin heys, and circular heys.

This is also true when it comes to formation and musical time signature for dances. This diversity is exciting and challenging for me.

Overall, I liked my experience English Country Dancing, and I think I will keep doing it.

Week 5 Reflection – Sketch Notes and Infographics

February 13, 2023 / / 0 Comments

This week, we learned about leveraging visuals for teaching and note-taking. We started by thinking about how to encourage people to retain more information from lectures.

I love the idea of sketchnoting as a way to retain information because it is something that I experienced a lot in my elementary education. You see, I went to a Waldorf school, where students are asked to create their own manipulatives and reference texts. So sketchnoting came naturally to me, and it was clear the ways that sketchnoting could be helpful for students.

An image of my sketchnote about the From the Mic episode with Chrissy Fowler

Here is a sketchnote that I created in class based on an episode of From the Mic, a podcast about contra dance calling. In this episode, Mary Westley interviews Chrissy Fowler, a fantastic New England contra caller who called many of the first dances I attended.

Then, we moved on to creating infographics. I found that infographics were a fun and innovative way to share a lot of information quickly.

My infographic about contra dance roles
Photo by Adam Lukomski

Week 4 Reflection Post- Tech for Accessibility

February 7, 2023 / / 1 Comment

The class on accessible tech was by far my favorite class so far. I particularly liked it because tech for accessibility in education is something that is really important to me.

My background is in outdoor education. Both of my parents work at Foothill Horizons Outdoor School and I have worked as an outdoor educator at two different summer camps.

In outdoor education, technology for accessibility looks very different from conventional schools. However, I see it as equally important in both environments. Teachers often use accessibility as an excuse to avoid bringing students outside, and I believe it is important that we uplift accessible technologies for the outdoors. In this post, I am going to dig into some of my favorite accessible technologies that help all people enjoy the outdoors.

Paddling Accessibility Tech

For paddling activities, my favorite accessibility tech is boat launch systems that help paddlers without use of their lower bodies enter the boats.

A man enters a kayak using the Nor Col EZ dock boat entry system
The Nor Col EZ Dock from the Nor Col website

Hiking Accessibility Tech

Another area or accessible tech that I love is tech to make hiking accessible to everyone. This includes all terrain wheelchairs for people who would like to travel on somewhat bumpy paths on their own power and all terrain joggers for folks who want to experience really remote places on tough paths with the help of others.

Image of a person with long hair and glasses sitting in a larger three-wheeled push chair.
A large push chair from Advance Mobility Freedom

These are just two of many options for accessible technology that we can use to help people enjoy going outside. These are some of the more pricey options, but fortunately there are options for teachers who want to rent these for their students. Power to Be is a great resource for people in Victoria who are interested in technologies to help people go outside.

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