Standard 4—Understanding the Cultural Dimensions and Contributions of the Arts

Students will develop an understanding of the personal and cultural forces that shape artistic communication and how the arts in turn shape the diverse cultures of past and present society.

Key ideas are identified by numbers (1).
Performance indicators are identified by bullets.
Sample tasks are identified by triangles (s).

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Elementary Dance

4. Students will know dances from many cultures and times and recognize their relationship to various cultural, social, and historic contexts. Students will recognize that dance is performed in many different cultural settings and serves many functions in diverse societies.

Students:

• identify basic dance movements that are typical of the major world cultures (a)
• explain the settings and circumstances in which dance is found in their lives and those of others, both past and present (b).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s discuss the dance forms of the Plains Indians
s explain the role that dance plays in their community (e.g., weddings, proms, festivals).

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Elementary Music

4. Students will develop a performing and listening repertoire of music of various genres, styles, and cultures that represent the peoples of the world and their manifestations in the United States. Students will recognize the cultural features of a variety of musical compositions and performances and understand the functions of music within the culture.

Students:

• identify when listening, and perform from memory, a basic repertoire of folk songs/dances and composed songs from the basic cultures that represent the peoples of the world (a)
• identify the titles and composers of well-known examples of classical concert music and blues/jazz selections (b)
• identify the primary cultural, geographical, and historical settings for the music they listen to and perform (c).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s sing folk music common to a period of history in the United States
s recognize and identify some simple pieces of music such as the tango, march and waltz and name the countries and composers most associated with the selections
s record in a log the folksongs sung in class along with the country of origin
s in music class make a pin map which shows the country of origin of folksongs and recordings.

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Elementary Theatre

4. Students will gain knowledge about past and present cultures as expressed through theatre. They will interpret how theatre reflects the beliefs, issues, and events of societies past and present.

Students:

• dramatize stories and folk tales from various cultures (a)
• engage in drama/theatre activities including music, dance, and games which reflect other cultures and ethnic groups (b)
• discuss how classroom theatre activities relate to their lives (c).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s read a folk tale in which animals play important roles; improvise being animals, comparing and contrasting the "cultures" of animals and human beings
s attend a community ethnic festival to learn about a particular culture, then share dances, songs and games learned at the festival with another class at school
s discuss responses to a theatrical performance explaining what ideas and feelings were conveyed and why the audience sympathized or was displeased with the main character.

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Elementary Visual Arts

4. Students will explore art and artifacts from various historical periods and world cultures to discover the roles that art plays in the lives of people of a given time and place and to understand how the time and place influence the visual characteristics of the art work. Students will explore art to understand the social, cultural, and environmental dimensions of human society.

Students:

• look at and discuss a variety of art works and artifacts from world cultures to discover some important ideas, issues, and events of those cultures (a)
• look at a variety of art works and artifacts from diverse cultures of the United States and identify some distinguishing characteristics (b)
• create art works that show the influence of a particular culture (c).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s examine the Spanish style of architecture of the Southwest and describe the ways in which that architecture differs from architecture in New England used for the same purposes
s discuss the ways in which the depiction of space differs in Egyptian art with the way it is depicted in Renaissance art and conjecture about the reasons for the differences
s study the style of the Australian Aboriginal art and create a work using that style but expressing their own ideas about nature and animals.

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Intermediate Dance

4. Students will know dances from many cultures and times and recognize their relationship to various cultural, social, and historic contexts. Students will recognize that dance is performed in many different cultural settings and serves many functions in diverse societies.

Students:

• identify the major dance forms of specific world cultures past and present (a)
• identify some of the major dance artists from diverse cultures (b)
• show how specific dance forms are related to the culture from which they come (c).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s attend a dance performance of an ethnic group and describe the characteristics of that dance
s discuss dance as ritual in an African group
s research the dance forms of the ethnic group from which they come or the dance forms of their teenage culture
s create a sequence and dance after investigating poems from Africa, India, Asia and South America to discover their rhythmic and metric structure.

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Intermediate Music

4. Students will develop a performing and listening repertoire of music of various genres, styles, and cultures that represent the peoples of the world and their manifestations in the United States. Students will recognize the cultural features of a variety of musical compositions and performances and understand the functions of music within the culture.

Students:

• identify the cultural contexts of a performance or recording and perform (with movement, where culturally appropriate) a varied repertoire of folk, art, and contemporary selections from the basic cultures that represent the peoples of the world (a)
• identify from a performance or recording the titles and composers of well-known examples of classical concert music and blues/jazz selections (b)
• discuss the current and past cultural, social, and political uses for the music they listen to and perform (c)
• in performing ensembles, read and perform repertoire in a culturally authentic manner (d).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s compile a list of listening selections categorized by countries or cultures of the world
s identify, from listening selections, different forms of jazz including blues, Dixieland, boogie woogie, modern, and cool. Name musicians associated with each of the Jazz forms
s discuss how work songs have helped workers during their labors
s after hearing a professional recording of a Sousa march, identify important stylistic concerns and discuss how to apply them in their own performance.

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Intermediate Theatre

4. Students will gain knowledge about past and present cultures as expressed through theatre. They will interpret how theatre reflects the beliefs, issues, and events of societies past and present.

Students:

• improvise scenes based on information about various cultures (a)
• create intercultural celebrations using props, settings, and costumes (b)
• explain how drama/theatre experiences relate to themselves and others (c).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s explore a ritual within a culture which marks a "rite of passage," then improvise a performance which marks an important event in the students' own lives
s create a Native American Festival representing various tribes and demonstrate the cultural indicators of each tribe e.g., rituals, costume, governmental structure, family life, etc.)
s explain how a dramatic performance on video or film depicts a feeling or event they may have experienced.

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Intermediate Visual Arts

4. Students will explore art and artifacts from various historical periods and world cultures to discover the roles that art plays in the lives of people of a given time and place and to understand how the time and place influence the visual characteristics of the art work. Students will explore art to understand the social, cultural, and environmental dimensions of human society.

Students:

• demonstrate how art works and artifacts from diverse world cultures reflect aspects of those cultures (a)
• demonstrate the ways in which some particular art works and artifacts reflect important aspects of the diverse cultures of the United States (b)
• create art works that reflect a particular historical period of a culture (c).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s research the totems and other artifacts of the Northwest Indians and discuss how those images are connected with their rituals and their beliefs about family and clan
s look at traditional Japanese art and identify its visual characteristics
s examine the patterns of Mexican textiles and create a work in which they invent a pattern based on those ideas.

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Commencement-General Education Dance

4. Students will know dances from many cultures and times and recognize their relationship to various cultural, social, and historic contexts. Students will recognize that dance is performed in many different cultural settings and serves many functions in diverse societies.

Students:

• explain the interaction of performer and audience in dance as a shared cultural event (a)
• identify the cultural elements in a variety of dances drawn from the folk and classical repertories (b)
• recognize specific contributions of dance and dancers to their own lives and to people in other times and places (c).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s describe their feelings and responses to a live dance performance and the effects that their responses might have on the performers
s view a performance of modern dance and see if they can spot the traditional folk elements present
s discuss the role that dance plays in the lives of a specific cultural group
s research and choreograph a performance that demonstrates the differences and similarities of dances that originated in various cultures
s develop a presentation that uses dance to communicate information about another discipline, e.g., history, literature, science
s in collaboration with another student, research, develop, and choreograph a dance dialogue between the approaches to dance of two different cultures
s attend several dance performances during the school year that reflect a range of styles and approaches to choreography and then compare and contrast the influence of culture on the styles.

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Commencement-General Education Music

4. Students will develop a performing and listening repertoire of music of various genres, styles, and cultures that represent the peoples of the world and their manifestations in the United States. Students will recognize the cultural features of a variety of musical compositions and performances and understand the functions of music within the culture.

Students:

• identify from performances or recordings the cultural contexts of a further varied repertoire of folk, art, and contemporary selections from the basic cultures that represent the peoples of the world (a)
• identify from performances or recordings the titles and composers and discuss the cultural contexts of well-known examples of classical concert music and blues/jazz selections (b)
• relate well-known musical examples from the 17th century onward with the dominant social and historical events (c).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s write program notes for a concert of folksongs and art songs that identify for the audience the source of the songs and how the song was used
s identify dance forms in music and write a report which details the time period these dance forms were performed, costumes worn during the period and the impact they had on the music performed
s compile an annotated list of some important musical compositions from the 1600’s to the 2000’s with references to significant historical and social events.

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Commencement-General Education Theatre

4. Students will gain knowledge about past and present cultures as expressed through theatre. They will interpret how theatre reflects the beliefs, issues, and events of societies past and present.

Students:

• read and view a variety of plays from different cultures (a)
• using the basic elements of theatre (e.g., speech, gesture, costume, etc.), explain how different theatrical productions represent the cultures from which they come (b)
• articulate the societal beliefs, issues and events of specific theatrical productions (c).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s read a play by a contemporary foreign playwright who writes about a social issue; analyze how the issue is depicted in the drama
s recreate a Kabuki theatre performance piece using appropriate makeup, costuming, set design and acting style showing an understanding of Japanese customs
s read a work from another century and/or another country and write a report explaining how the play realistically portrays life in that time period.

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Commencement-General Education Visual Arts

4. Students will explore art and artifacts from various historical periods and world cultures to discover the roles that art plays in the lives of people of a given time and place and to understand how the time and place influence the visual characteristics of the art work. Students will explore art to understand the social, cultural, and environmental dimensions of human society.

Students:

• analyze works of art from diverse world cultures and discuss the ideas, issues, and events of the culture that these works convey (a)
• examine works of art and artifacts from United States cultures and place them within a cultural and historical context (b)
• create art works that reflect a variety of cultural influences (c).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s compare the way the human figure is depicted in Byzantine art with the way it is depicted in High Renaissance art and explore the reasons for the differences
s select a style of art from the 20th century, study the characteristics of that style, research one artist who painted in that style and make a work of art using that style but expressing the students' point of view or idea.

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Commencement-Major Sequence Dance

4. Students will know dances from many cultures and times and recognize their relationship to various cultural, social, and historic contexts. Students will recognize that dance is performed in many different cultural settings and serves many functions in diverse societies.

In addition to the General Education performance indicators, students:

• demonstrate an understanding of dance as a shared cultural event when giving presentations (dance, lecture, video, written report) (a)
• demonstrate a knowledge of cultural elements in dance presentations of folk and classical repertories (b)
• prepare formal presentations that use materials about dance and dancers of other times and places (c).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s write the explanatory notes for one segment of a dance festival showcasing various ethnic dances
s write a short research paper on the contributions of dance to a specific culture and the ways in which dance expresses the values and beliefs of that culture
s work in a group to develop and present a comparison of dance steps, styles, and forms of various cultures
s develop a presentation that integrates dance into another art form (e.g., storytelling, visual art, choral singing).

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Commencement-Major Sequence Music

4. Students will develop a performing and listening repertoire of music of various genres, styles, and cultures that represent the peoples of the world and their manifestations in the United States. Students will recognize the cultural features of a variety of musical compositions and performances and understand the functions of music within the culture.

In addition to the General Education performance indicators, students:

• analyze music from various cultures on the basis of its functions, giving examples and describing uses to which music is put in those cultures (a)
• in performing ensembles, read and perform repertoire in a culturally authentic manner and use culture-based criteria for assessing performances, their own and others’ (b).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s compile a list of musical compositions that exemplify the significant characteristics of the major world cultures; describe important musical dimensions and the salient cultural attributes of each
s play rhythmic patterns in an authentic manner when performing different forms of Jazz
s perform in a culturally-based ensemble (e.g., steel drum band, gospel choir, or German brass band).

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Commencement-Major Sequence Theatre

4. Students will gain knowledge about past and present cultures as expressed through theatre. They will interpret how theatre reflects the beliefs, issues, and events of societies past and present.

In addition to the General Education performance indicators, students:

• conduct an in-depth investigation of the works of a given culture or playwright (a)
• create a multicultural theatre festival of excerpts from plays representing various cultures (c).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s read the plays of Sophocles, Aeschylus, and Euripides from the ancient Greek time period and write a paper which compares and contrasts their style and themes and discusses the impact each had on staging
s produce a festival of plays from different cultures centered on the same theme.

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Commencement-Major Sequence Visual Arts

4. Students will explore art and artifacts from various historical periods and world cultures to discover the roles that art plays in the lives of people of a given time and place and to understand how the time and place influence the visual characteristics of the art work. Students will explore art to understand the social, cultural, and environmental dimensions of human society.

In addition to the General Education performance indicators, students:

• present a body of work within their portfolio that reflects the influences of variety of cultural styles (a)
• interpret the meaning of works and artifacts in terms of the cultures that produced them (b)
• explain how cultural values have been expressed in the visual arts, how art works have been used to bring about cultural change and how the art of a culture has been influenced by art works coming from outside that culture (c).

This is evident, for example, when students:
s write a short research paper exploring how the depictions of war in The Third of May by Goya and Napoleon On The Battlefield at Eylau by Gros differ one from another
s discuss the influence of African art on Picasso's Demoiselles D’Avignon
s look at the body of work in their portfolios and describe what they consider to be their style and indicate what has influenced that style.
s compare the work of regionalist artists who documented life of the ordinary people in a given place; such as Thomas Hart Benton, John Stuart Curry, and Grant Wood with the Harlem Renaissance artists like William H. Johnson, Jacob Lawrence, Aaron Douglas, and Romare Bearden.

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