MY TOES ARE OUT TO GET ME

Poetry in ballet class?  How does that work?  Well, applying dance to other areas of a student's life (cross-curricular teaching) is a wonderful way to help improve movement skills and enrich other areas of his/her life. 

I have recently started reciting part of a poem I heard on 'Sesame Street' to improve young ballet students' awareness of feet when dancing.  We recite these two verses during our warm-up to awaken an awareness of feet to the rest of body. 

MY TOES ARE OUT TO GET ME!
By Sarah “Dixie” Feldman

My toes are out to get me!
They really have it in,
I don’t know why they hate me so –
Those rogues beneath my shins!

They look innocent enough
Angelic, and petite
But those little wily wigglers
Are scheming down there at my feet!

There are at least a couple of benefits to this technique.  Firstly, the light-hearted tone keeps communication open and they easily correct themselves when I say "Are those rogues beneath your shins?"  Secondly, the students have not only memorized the poem (literature), but can relate to a poem, and are keen to learn more poetry that they can apply to their lives.

Do you have any sneaky ways of incorporating other subjects into dance class?