Locomotor and Non-Locomotor MovementActivities & Teaching Strategies
Active, whole-body exploration makes movement vocabulary memorable because students experience the difference between locomotor and non-locomotor movement kinesthetically. When they embody each category, the distinction becomes physical knowledge rather than abstract vocabulary to recall later.
Learning Objectives
- 1Classify given movements as either locomotor or non-locomotor.
- 2Demonstrate a sequence of at least three locomotor and three non-locomotor movements.
- 3Compare and contrast the characteristics of locomotor and non-locomotor movements in a written or verbal explanation.
- 4Create a short movement phrase that clearly shows a change from traveling to staying in place.
- 5Explain how specific movements can convey different emotions without words.
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Sorting in Motion: Move and Freeze
Call out a movement category and students perform any movement from that category in their personal space or through the room. When you call freeze, students stop and name the specific movement they were doing, then classify it. Introduce movements that students might misclassify, such as jumping in place versus jumping forward, to deepen their understanding of the defining distinction.
Prepare & details
What is the difference between a movement that takes you somewhere and one that keeps you in place?
Facilitation Tip: During Sorting in Motion, use clear stop signals so students freeze completely before deciding whether their movement traveled or stayed in place.
Setup: Varies; may include outdoor space, lab, or community setting
Materials: Experience setup materials, Reflection journal with prompts, Observation worksheet, Connection-to-content framework
Partner Observation: Watch and Label
Student pairs take turns. One partner performs a 10-second sequence that includes at least one locomotor and one non-locomotor movement. The watching partner identifies and names each type of movement they observed. Partners switch roles and then compare observations, discussing any movements that were hard to categorize and why.
Prepare & details
Can you create a movement sequence that uses both traveling and staying-in-place movements?
Setup: Varies; may include outdoor space, lab, or community setting
Materials: Experience setup materials, Reflection journal with prompts, Observation worksheet, Connection-to-content framework
Create-and-Share: My Movement Sentence
Students create a short movement sentence with exactly three movements: one locomotor, one non-locomotor, and one of their choice. They practice the sequence until it flows, then share it with a partner and explain which category each movement belongs to. Partners ask one clarifying question about the movement choices before sharing a favorite from the exchange with the class.
Prepare & details
How can different movements show different feelings without using words?
Setup: Varies; may include outdoor space, lab, or community setting
Materials: Experience setup materials, Reflection journal with prompts, Observation worksheet, Connection-to-content framework
Think-Pair-Share: The Feelings Question
Ask students to try showing sadness or happiness using only non-locomotor movements. Students try independently, show a partner, and discuss: was the feeling clear? What specific movement choices communicated the emotion? Groups share one successful example with the class and identify which non-locomotor movement was most expressive.
Prepare & details
What is the difference between a movement that takes you somewhere and one that keeps you in place?
Setup: Standard classroom seating; students turn to a neighbor
Materials: Discussion prompt (projected or printed), Optional: recording sheet for pairs
Teaching This Topic
Teach the categories through clear movement contrasts first, then layer in compositional tasks. Avoid teaching the terms in isolation; always pair definitions with immediate movement so the language feels alive. Research shows that labeling categories while moving strengthens memory and later application in choreography.
What to Expect
Successful learning shows when students can instantly perform or recognize locomotor and non-locomotor movements, label them correctly in partner tasks, and use both categories intentionally in their own movement sentences. Students who transfer the vocabulary to new contexts demonstrate deep understanding.
These activities are a starting point. A full mission is the experience.
- Complete facilitation script with teacher dialogue
- Printable student materials, ready for class
- Differentiation strategies for every learner
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Common MisconceptionDuring Sorting in Motion, students may assume jumping is always locomotor because it looks like traveling.
What to Teach Instead
During Sorting in Motion, pause after jumps and ask students to travel forward or stay in place; if they leave the spot, it is locomotor, if they return to the same spot, it is non-locomotor.
Common MisconceptionDuring Partner Observation, students might say a non-locomotor movement is less important because it doesn’t go anywhere.
What to Teach Instead
During Partner Observation, highlight examples from the partner’s dance where a stillness or gesture creates a powerful moment, showing how non-locomotor movement focuses attention.
Common MisconceptionDuring Create-and-Share, students may believe a dance needs mostly locomotor movement to be counted as real dance.
What to Teach Instead
During Create-and-Share, ask each student to explain why they chose the proportion of locomotor to non-locomotor actions in their sentence, making the intentional choice visible to peers.
Assessment Ideas
During Sorting in Motion, call out a movement and have students respond with one finger for locomotor and two fingers for non-locomotor; watch for accuracy and speed.
After Partner Observation, provide a worksheet with stick-figure actions; students circle locomotor movements and square non-locomotor movements, then write one sentence about why a dancer might use both types.
After Think-Pair-Share, ask students to share how the robot scenario used mostly locomotor movements while the tree used mostly non-locomotor movements, and how those choices affect the feeling of the dance.
Extensions & Scaffolding
- Challenge: Ask students to create a 6-beat movement sentence that uses exactly three locomotor and three non-locomotor actions in a specific order.
- Scaffolding: Provide picture cards with the movement names and icons so students can sequence them before trying the movement.
- Deeper: Have students research a folk dance and identify which movements are locomotor and which are non-locomotor, then teach a short excerpt to the class.
Key Vocabulary
| Locomotor Movement | A movement that travels through space, changing the body's location. Examples include walking, running, and skipping. |
| Non-Locomotor Movement | A movement that occurs in place, without changing the body's location. Examples include bending, stretching, and twisting. |
| Travel | To move from one spot to another, a key characteristic of locomotor movement. |
| In Place | To stay in one general area, a key characteristic of non-locomotor movement. |
Suggested Methodologies
More in Movement and Story: Dance and Theater
Expressing Emotions Through Movement
Students use facial expressions and body language to portray different roles and feelings in dramatic play.
2 methodologies
Developing Characters
Students explore character traits and motivations through improvisation and short scenes.
2 methodologies
Narrative Dance Sequences
Using locomotor and non-locomotor movements to represent narrative sequences and tell stories through dance.
2 methodologies
Creating Dance Phrases
Students learn to combine individual movements into short dance phrases, focusing on beginning, middle, and end.
2 methodologies
Props and Costumes in Theater
Understanding the role of props and costumes in dramatic productions and how they enhance character and setting.
2 methodologies
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