The joy of scarves in kinder!
Ms. Branch's Biography
Chelsea Branch is from Fort Wayne, Indiana. She attended Hope College in Holland, MI and graduated with a BA in Dance Education K-12 and a minor in English Education. Chelsea worked at Hamilton Elementary School as the dance and yoga teacher. During her years at Hamilton, she designed and implemented a PK-8 dance curriculum centered around National Arts Standards that created opportunities for student creativity and voices. Chelsea worked closely with classroom teachers to build arts integrated units in literacy, math, and science. Additionally, she assisted in leading SEL initiatives that greatly improved the climate and culture for students. Mindfulness is a core value in Chelsea‘s work with students and she was trained by Mindful Schools. Chelsea is passionate about sharing yoga and is certified in Yoga Calm, Rainbow Kids Yoga, and became a RYT 200 yoga teacher through Marianne Wells Yoga School in Costa Rica.
In her free time, Chelsea loves to read fiction and memoirs, cook (although she’s not very skilled yet), and is a professional dancer and choreographer. Chelsea co-owns The Rooted Space, a dance studio in North Center and serves as the Kids' Business Coach for Guppy Tank, a grant and mentorship program for young entrepreneurs.
Posts
5-8th grade yoga classes have been designing their own yoga sequences. Some of the students have chosen to lead their sequence with the whole class. It's been inspiring to see such young leaders!
After studying the dance company Pilobolus, we had a chance to make letters just like them! Can you guess which letter this is?!
5th Grade 107 is going to wow you with our complex tap rhythms!
5th Grade 105 is working on our breaking skills for the Winter Show. We can't wait to show you the strength and coordination we have gained!
We love making cool sculptures out of our bodies like Edgar Degas did with "The Little Dancer."
Each classroom took the time to set our dance studio values for the year. Some examples include:
- judgement free zone
- kind words
- informal feeling
- respect
- fun
- excited and positive
- relaxed
- accepting
- full of imagination
- peaceful
I look forward to facilitating the studio into the space they want to create!
Our new fifth graders are jumping right into the dance curriculum with two new genres of dance they have never done before: hip-hop and tap! 107 is kicking of the year studying rhythm tap and the rich tap history that they now get to be a part of. 105 completed their first breaking battle this week in our new hip-hop unit and their moves were impressive! These hard working kids are going to improve so quickly and I look forward to their journey.
Kindergarteners loved reading about Gerald, a tall giraffe who didn't know he could dance in "Giraffes Can't Dance." After reading, we talked through goals we wanted to achieve and just couldn't do quite YET. The students listed interests such as "backflip," "ballet," and "balancing on one foot." We are excited to get to work on achieving these goals!
Every year I choose a quote to keep the dance program grounded. This year, I decided to share it with the older students so that they can help create a space where each student can be themselves.
Kindergarten and first graders read ¡Mambo Mucho Mambo! this week and danced to the sounds of Latin Jazz. If you are looking to move to the fun music at home with your family, try the Mambo Classics playlist on Spotify for a great pre-chosen selection of Latin Jazz music full of energy and passion! ¡Qué Rico!
On Deck: Yoga for Sport!
Decatur's 5th-8th graders are beginning a Yoga for Sport unit in PE and yoga classes. Coach and I designed the unit so that students are prepared to take care of their bodies, minds, and teams as they advance further into the world of sports. Even if a student doesn't play for a team, they can use the tools we will be teaching to keep themselves and others healthy and thriving. Check out this video that we are watching in class this week to start to learn the physiology of our bodies.
Relaxation is always more sweet after a class of Yogarrrr! We use our bean bag "parrots" to help find the weight of our bodies in the mat and use them as tools to relax.
- Name
- Chelsea Branch
- Position
- Dance & Yoga Teacher, Restorative Practitioner
- clbranch@cps.edu
- Other
- [email protected]
