by Dulce Gomez, Marketing Intern at The Joyce

In conducting research for my upcoming Master’s paper, I came across an interesting article in Dance Teacher from October of 2007. It spoke about the empowering force of dance for ESL (English as a Second Language) students. Dance was being used to facilitate learning English for students who were new to the U.S. and struggling to find a way to express themselves in their new home. Wow- who would have thought to use dance to teach language? The article goes on to explain that dance is part of almost every culture and the emotions expressed read the same across cultures. Additionally, it engages students in that it provides a familiar medium where they can feel safe and confident. Vocabulary is learned through technique, movement instruction, and direction. Not only are students learning a new language, but they are becoming more confident and are finding an outlet to express themselves. It makes you wonder…what else does dance have the power to do?