Year 9

Year 10

Dance is great for improving general fitness and it is also a fantastic tool to help improve co-ordination, spatial awareness, mental functioning, confidence, and creativity. It also relieves stress and improves posture.
Dance not only exercises the body but also the brain, as the course develops in greater detail problem solving through choreography, enabling you to transfer these skills into other areas of learning and life. Team working skills and sensitivity to others are developed in greater depth within group Performances and Choreography.
This two year course comprises of four units. Within Year 10 students will have the opportunity to complete Unit 2 Examination.

Unit 2: Set Dance – Practical Examination – 20%
This is a set dance, chosen by AQA lasting approximately one minute. This is taught by the teacher during the course and performed as an examination.

Year 11

Within Year 11, students will complete Units 1, 3 and 4. If required, students will have the opportunity to re-sit Unit 2 in this year. 

Unit 1: Critical Appreciation of Dance – Written Paper - 20%
This is a 1 hour written paper that will be taken at the end of the course. Candidates will study two professional dance works and answer a short and concise written paper focusing on critical analysis and perceptive understanding of the two chosen professional works.

Unit 2: Set Dance – Practical Examination – 20%
This is a set dance, chosen by AQA lasting approximately one minute. This is taught by the teacher during the course and performed as an examination.

Unit 3: Performance in a group dance – Practical Examination – 20%

This 3 minutes long group piece is choreographed by the teacher with regular input from the candidates.

Unit 4: Choreography

Task 1 – Solo Choreography – 15%
Candidates use a chosen professional dance work as a stimulus to choreograph a 1½ minute solo.

Task 2 – Solo/Duo/Group Choreography – 25%
Using a range of choreographic tools, candidates are required to choreograph either a solo duo or a group dance of their own.