School Residencies

BFS arts residencies fulfill the BFS mission by bringing traditional and participatory dance, song, & music to students, staff, and families in PreK-12 schools.

Key Aspects

BFS school residencies strive to support educators, students, and families. Ideally, each residency will achieve three things:

  1. Provide music & movement experiences which also
    • Connect to local culture & history
    • Sample different regional or global cultures
    • Align with curriculum standards 
  2. Offer participatory programming that is
    • Inclusive (anyone can join)
    • Adaptable (readily modified)
    • Easily-learned (no special skills needed)
    • Non-hierarchical (all in it together, team-based, non-competitive)
  3. Cultivate prosocial behaviors, such as
    • Cooperation 
    • Mutual respect 
    • Kindness & empathy

There is no standard formula for a BFS school residency, because we draw on the strengths of individual teaching artists and we also tailor the programs to meet the needs of the particular teachers and the school.

For example, some schools want weekly visits for a certain amount of time while others want a weeklong intensive. Some teachers request a type of dance that meshes with a particular aspect of their curriculum, while others want to use traditional New England social dancing to establish positive social connections across grade levels. The music and movement speak for themselves, and most repertoire also strengthens core academic skills such as numeracy, sequencing, vocabulary, language development, rhyming, patterns, predicting, and oral language expression & comprehension. The possibilities are almost endless–Let us know what you have in mind!

Typically, we ask schools to contribute only 50% of the full cost of the residency (and BFS covers the rest, with thanks to our generous contributors and grantors!) The school’s portion may come from budgeted funds for social/emotional learning, physical education, music, or arts education; sometimes the partner contribution is paid by a separate group that supports educational initiatives, such as a parent-teacher group or arts enrichment fund. We pay our teaching artists a fair wage and the total residency fees depend on the program duration.

Resources for Educators

We love helping teaching artists visit schools, but we really love it when educators use the repertoire themselves, long after the residency is over. To help this happen, BFS offers books and recordings to interested educators. We also have led sessions at professional conferences, including Maine AEYC and Maine AHPERD, and have introduced material to educators at staff meetings and inservice days. We’ve also developed a guide and bibliography to support educators.

Publications & Resources

Many gifted leaders have published materials for use in classrooms or with other community groups. Organizations host camps, conferences, and other learning opportunities. Here’s a guide to some of our favorite resources.

Download the Guide

Dance Books for Kids

This annotated bibliography of dance-related children’s literature includes many titles available at local schools and the Belfast Free Library.

Download Bibliography

Impacts

One evening, a parent messaged, “My child couldn’t stop talking about a dance in French. Can you send me the music?” We replied and the parent immediately messaged, “Thanks! She’s dancin’!”

A fifth grader, excited about learning ukulele chords in a BFS residency, put a ukulele on their holiday wish list.

At a school residency, a student who has challenges in school was invited to try out the wooden spoons. They demonstrated extraordinary rhythm and skill, outshining grade-level classmates and receiving effusive compliments from the performers.

Want to Read About Past BFS Residencies?

Click the links for more info about programs with school partners:

  • RSU 71 (Belfast, Belmont, Morrill, Searsmont & Swanville ME)
  • Prescott Memorial School in Washington ME (here, here, here, and here)
  • The Game Loft, Monhegan Island, and Waldo County Schools (here)
  • Deer Isle-Stonington Elementary School (here)
  • The Maine School of Mathematics and Science in Limestone ME (here)

Ideas for BFS Residencies:

As noted above, BFS can provide a variety of residencies. Here are a few examples:

  • Singing work songs in a school garden or classroom kitchen
  • Dancing and drumming with traditional West African rhythms
  • Learning square dances done in the local community for generations
  • Playing ukulele and other instruments
  • Singing and moving together as a group
  • Learning the forms of New England social dance that are offered at public dances throughout the region

“Thank you so much for coming in! I have already been using a bunch of the things I learned in all my classes. It has truly freed me up to put the fun back in music.”

— Elementary school music teacher

“I like playing the ukulele with my friends. My class has been learning our first ukulele song and have all learned how to tune the instrument. Every ukulele day, I can’t wait for the lessons to start!”

— Grade 4 student in RSU 71

“I was amazed by how well-behaved and engaged our students were, with the whole student body dancing in the gymnasium. This was an incredible experience for them!”

— Elementary school principal