Teaching Poetry Through Dance

Abstract

“Teaching Poetry Through Dance” draws upon the similarities between dance and poetry to recommend inclusive and innovative pedagogical practices. The chapter suggests that all poetry, but especially poetry that engages closely with issues of corporality, can be connected to dance, and that emphasizing this connection encourages students to engage with the written word in original and invigorating ways. Delchamps analyzes poems by writers Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson, attesting that such poems take on new meaning when studied alongside videos of dance performances. She further claims that dance teaching methodologies help students learn to study a poem’s form, content, narration, and style. Students think differently about a poem when it is performed; Delchamps therefore recommends kinesthetic, visual, audible, and tactile exercises that work in various teaching environments and for students with diverse learning styles.