Activity 2.5: spacewalking – dance/movement

Introduction

Students explore the concepts and dynamics of 'weightlessness' and 'sustained movement'. The resource Blast off with NASA astronaut Rex Walheim: part 1 of 4 is used as a beginning point.

In the first part of the activity, 'mirroring' is used to introduce the idea of sustained movement. In the second part, students work solo. Music can be introduced at any time.

Duration

• Mirroring: 5 minutes
• Spacewalking and space working: 5–10 minutes

Resources

• Blast off with NASA astronaut Rex Walheim: part 1 of 4
• Open space large enough for students to move comfortably and safely
• Ambient music (try searching for 'space music' on recognised music download sites and YouTube)

• Activity stepsShow details

  Mirroring

  1. Watch the relevant section of the video Blast off with NASA astronaut Rex Walheim: part 1 of 4. (Time cue: from 11:45 to the end.)
  2. Have students pair up and then face each other, one being A and the other B.
  3. Have students recall the way Rex Walheim moved in the space shuttle. There is no gravity in space so objects have no weight. Movements are smooth and in slow motion because there is nothing to resist. It is similar to the feeling you have swimming under water where you push against the water and this causes your movements to be quite slow and controlled.
  4. Partner A begins some movements in slow motion (for example, moving an arm or a hand). Partner B mirrors them. (You can model this if needed.)
  5. Students need to understand that in order to copy someone exactly, the movements need to be slow and sustained, giving the other person enough time to clearly see and respond.
  6. Continue this and then swap over, with Partner B taking the lead.
  7. This will establish the idea of slow motion and sustained movement.
  7. As an extension, give the students a very particular activity to 'mirror'. This can be related to space or an everyday activity such as brushing teeth or combing hair.
  8. In pairs they 'rehearse' this activity so that they are completely synchronised.
  9. Music could be useful here to provide mood and atmosphere.

  
  

  Spacewalking and space working

  1. Students now work solo. This time they explore walking or working in space.
  2. Provide music that allows them to imagine, and encourages response. The music could be dramatic, build tension or create a relaxed or magical atmosphere.
  2. Ask students to imagine they are wearing a large, heavy suit to walk around the space station. Alternatively, they could be wearing ordinary clothes on the mid-deck inside the shuttle. How might their clothes affect the way they move?
  3. Ask students to make movements that are continually in slow motion and are sustained – this is the big challenge and it requires focus and control.
  4. Students can experiment with using different levels, different directions, different areas of space, turning and using different body parts.
  5. Ask students what it feels like just to turn their heads very slowly, or to rise up from the ground very slowly. How much time would it take to do simple tasks in space?
  6. You can feed in ideas or provide guidance with some narrative. Different music can be used throughout to provide different responses.
  6. Some of this work could be captured digitally (photographed or filmed) so that students can experience their work and respond to it later, reflecting on what they felt and what challenges the activity presented.