Pones is committed to providing trauma-informed arts education to youth of all ages and experience levels. Students participating in our hands-on, active, and creative classes have the opportunity to absorb and retain knowledge in a new and exciting way. Through arts education, students can improve their presentation abilities, increase collaboration with others, develop creative problem-solving capabilities, and gain confidence in themselves. Also, non-performers and experienced dancers alike will benefit from the physical fitness of dance and learn how to productively focus their energy. Furthermore, Pones’ youth focused programs include trauma informed care, social emotional learning (SEL) outcomes, such as setting and achieving positive goals, and feeling and showing empathy to each other, which benefit every participant in the program.
We offer a rich variety of programs, such as in-school artist residencies, after-school enrichment, assembly presentations, and unique arts integration classes. These classes are excellent choices for small or large groups, clubs, community centers, library events, in-school field trips, indoor or outdoor activities, and special events.
Stories in Motion Residency
Curriculum: Creative Writing, Dance, English/Language Arts, Theatre
We all have stories – good, bad, and everything in between – but the common thread with our stories is that they define us. Through storytelling and movement, we will explore what it is to bring our stories to life. No writing or dance experience necessary—just a willingness to share and explore movement. Over the course of 8 weeks, students will write their own stories, fiction or nonfiction, and turn those stories into movement storytelling.
Example: Week 1: Brainstorm about story potentials through movement and writing. Week 2: Solidify story ideas and begin crafting an outline. Week 3: Write out the story. Week 4: Finalize stories and share with other students. Weeks 5-7: Start putting together the movement version of the stories. Week 8: Review stories and perform for the class, and potentially family and friends.
Recommended Grades: 4-12
Maximum Audience: 30
Length: 60 minutes each workshop
Cost: $880 for 8 weeks
Max #Sessions per Day: 5
Party Animals Residency
Curriculum: Dance, STEM
In this class, we will investigate animals based on how they move. This program can be one to 10 sessions long. We’ll explore the different animal classifications in a dance performance of the animal kingdom. Students will explore and learn about each set of animals. From the page to the stage, the students will understand each grouping both mentally and physically. The class will culminate in a group created dance inspired by the animals within each classification.
Example: Using the principles of dance students will explore movements of animals such as Protozoa/Flatworms, Echinoderms/Mollusks, Arthropods, Reptiles, Fish, Amphibians, Birds, and Mammals. Students may create choreography based on the animal movements and even perform for family and friends!
Recommended Grades: K-6
Maximum Audience: 30
Length: 60 minutes each workshop
Cost: $110 per session, $1,100 for 10 weeks
Max #Sessions per Day: 5
Hip Hop and Respect
Curriculum: Dance, Social Emotional Learning
We use hip hop as a tool to discuss and discover how empowerment and respect are valuable parts of being a young person. How do these ideas go together? Hip hop is all about respect and we will focus on celebrating each other, and lifting each other up.
Example: Each week we will work with a different theme/topic, for example, building up our peers. As we talk about supporting one another, we will employ exercises such as imagining you are mentoring someone younger than you or playing the ‘Paper on the Back’ exercise. We will then start to build a dance about these compliments, using collaborative skills in dance and creating choreography as a group.
Recommended Grades: 4-12
Maximum Audience: 30
Length: 60 minutes
Cost: $110 per workshop (recommended 2 workshops minimum)
Max #Sessions per Day: 5
Core Creativity: Learning Through Dance
Curriculum: Dance, English/Language Arts, Social Emotional Learning, Social Studies, STEM
Combine arts and humanities with core content in an exciting dance workshop that will inspire students to take an active role in their own learning while engaging in aligned, standards-based activities. Perfect for the kinesthetic learner, this workshop helps to put ideas in the body and, therefore, cement them in the mind. This program is arts integration at its best and can be tailored to any grade level and content. Workshops offer students the opportunity to experience grade-appropriate curriculum in a fun, kinesthetic, and engaging way.
Core Creativity workshops will promote:
- Critical thinking skills
- Physical fitness
- Self-confidence
- Collaborative activities
- Creative expression
- Deep absorption of content
Core Creativity familiarizes students with key dance elements while igniting their imagination, and interacting through activities involving critical thinking and movement. This workshop is designed to reinforce learning and reflect upon student knowledge.
Examples: Students could physically experience what it might feel like to become the water cycle and see what evaporation, condensation, precipitation, transpiration, infiltration, and collection might look like if it were a dance. Once students feel these movements in their own bodies, they can better understand how the water cycle works and remember this information for years to come.
NOTE: Core Creativity requires communication with the teacher, prior to the workshop, about how the curriculum will be integrated.
Recommended Grades: K-12
Maximum Audience: 30
Length: 60 minutes each workshop
Cost: $220 for 2 workshops (minimum)/$110 each additional workshop
Max #Sessions per Day: 5
Dance 101: Explore Your Expression
Curriculum: Cultural Connections, Dance, Social Studies, STEM
Dance 101 is a workshop for everyone – from novice to advance – no special shoes or prior knowledge is required. Students will learn how to use the basic elements of dance (body, energy, space and time) to communicate using their bodies while exploring various styles of recreational, cultural, and social dance with this introductory course to the basic terms, steps, and concepts of each style.
Dance 101 will help students:
- Discover a fun way to stay healthy
- Communicate with others
- Express themselves
- Build confidence and a positive body image
This workshop can be a sample of different dance styles or focus on any style of dance, such as hip hop, ballet, salsa, or disco. Please let us know preference when ordering program.
Recommended Grades: K-12
Maximum Audience: 30
Length: 60 minutes
Cost: $110 per workshop
Max #Sessions per Day: 5
Dancing On The Globe
Curriculum: Dance, Social Emotional Learning, Social Studies, STEM
Students will learn how to use the basic elements of dance (body, energy, space and time) to explore culture through non-verbal movements. They will look at the world in a new way, via the lens of dance in cultures from around the globe through original and learned choreography. Examples of cultural dances from around the globe include Bollywood from Mumbai, Kakilambe from Guinea West Africa, and Salsa from Cuba.
Dancing on the Globe will help students:
- Think globally and encourage cultural empathy
- Choose how their body will represent the landscapes, objects, or characters needed to tell a story using dance
- Learn dances from around the globe, such as, the Kakilambe from Guinea West Africa, Salsa from Cuba, and Bollywood from Mumbai
Recommended Grades: 3-12
Maximum Audience: 30
Length: 60 minutes
Cost: $330 for 3 workshops (minimum); $440 for 4 workshops (recommended)
Max #Sessions per Day: 5
Dancing Through The Ages
Curriculum: Dance, Social Studies, Visual Arts
While Dancing through the Ages students will explore various styles of recreational, cultural, and social dance from 1920s Charleston, 1950s sock hop, 1970s disco, 1980s hip hop, or any requested decades. Students also create a visual art project timeline, while learning about the events of the time periods they are discussing (ranging from women’s suffrage to the premiere of Star Wars).
Dancing through the Ages will help students:
- Discover a fun way to stay healthy
- Communicate with others, Express themselves
- Learn about historical events in a new and fun way
- Build confidence and a positive body image
NOTE: This workshop can be a survey of different dance styles or focus on any time period or ideas. Please let us know preference when ordering the program.
Example: Students will start out the class learning about the decade by exploring the style and culture of the time period. Then students will learn choreography from the time period.
Recommended Grades: 3-10
Maximum Audience: 30
Length: 60 minutes (3-4 day workshop)
Cost: $330 for 3 workshops (minimum); $440 for 4 workshops (recommended)
Max #Sessions per Day: 5
Show U: Ideas in Action
Curriculum: Dance, English/Language Arts, Social Emotional Learning, Theatre
Students are transformed into performance artists through a fun and exciting workshop led by professional dancers. They will engage their creative sides and think critically about issues and topics relevant to their own lives while creating, rehearsing, and performing an original piece all their own.
By the end of the program students will have learned:
- Basic theatre and dance concepts
- Effective communication
- Respectful collaboration
- How to stand up for what they believe in / become an activist
Students will perform their work as empowered individuals, and create something completely unique, meaningful, and fun.
Example: A class of eighth grade students voices a list of issues that are significant to them: bullying, recycling, sports, and school uniforms. Collectively, they select ‘sports’ as the topic to focus on for their production. Specifically, they have noticed that extracurricular sports are too expensive to participate in once travel costs, uniforms, equipment, and fees have been calculated. They investigate ideas that will make sports more affordable so that everyone who wants to participate is able to do so. In small groups they utilize provided composition worksheets to guide their examination of how to create positive change in sports. The students are challenged to funnel their discussion into action by creating a piece that uses multiple art forms – theatre, dance, spoken word, visual arts – to express their ideas. Students perform their original work for their peers at the end of the workshop.
Recommended Grades: 6-12
Maximum Audience: 30
Length: 60 minutes each workshop; minimum 3 days
Cost: $330 for 3 workshops (minimum)/$110 each additional workshop
Max #Sessions per Day: 5
Moving with the Movies
Curriculum: Dance, Social Emotional Learning, Social Studies, STEM
Students will learn the basic elements of dance (body, energy, space, time) to communicate characters and stories through non-verbal movement. They will learn to think from a new perspective as they experience different dances from movies across the globe and through history. Students will think critically about different perspectives and encourage empathy.
They will choose how their body will represent characters, cultures, and stories needed to portray a story through dance. Dance styles include examples such as Bollywood from Indian movie musicals, modern choreography from Disney movie musicals, and golden era dancing from old Hollywood.
Recommended Grades: 3-12
Maximum Audience: 30
Length: 60 minutes
Cost: $330 for 3 workshops (minimum recommended); $440 for 4 workshops (recommended)
Max #Sessions per Day: 5
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