Education in Dance and Somatics

Academic year 2019-2020

The Education in Dance and Somatics is offered in 2, 4, 6 and 8 month course that introduces somatic movement and dance practice. The emphasis is on group facilitation using a somatic approach. It also offers opportunities to explore integration of those methods into wider society. Our interest is to offer somatic education to people engaged in diverse fields and to support the application of what they learn to their personal and working lives.

The education emphasises experiential learning, somatic methods, movement exploration and improvisation, creative process and art as a diverse cultural practice, self-knowledge and group process. Education is offered by combining regular classes, workshops and special projects.

The course is suitable for anyone interested in any of the following:

• movement and dance, somatic methods and creative process
• movement and dance as artistic practice
• dance and somatics in arts, social welfare, health and education
• gaining experience and skills in facilitating groups
• art and dance movement therapy
• community and participatory art
• In selecting a group to study together for the year, we aim to bring together people with diverse backgrounds, skills, knowledge and different approaches to working.

Classes are taught in English. The education takes place at the Eastern Finland Sports Institute in Joensuu.

Structure of Education

The year is divided in two semesters and four modules. The education is full time with weekly morning and afternoon classes, workshops and projects. The studies consist of group learning prcesses and individual processes.

For the group studies, attendance is mandatory since a shared skill set is being built and a common understanding of these skills is necessary for the group learning process to proceed. Between the modules there is 2-4 weeks period of *open workshops, individual studies with mentoring and working practice and portfolio creation

In order to receive the certificate for having obtained one year Education in Dance and Somatics, you need to complete all four modules and additional individual study tasks or participate in workshops between the modules.

*open workshops are for anyone and they have an additional cost

Module 1 (August 12 – October 4)

• Introduction to the education
• Student presentations
• Introduction to somatic movement approaches
• Introduction to pedagogical approaches

Module 2 (October 21 – December 18)

• Group learning process 1
• Individual learning process 1
• Somatic approaches 1
• Instructing skills 1

Module 3 (January 13 – March 6)

• Group learning process 2
• Individual learning process 2
• Somatic approaches 2
• Instructing skills 2
• Movement & technology – audiovisual, site specific

Module 4 (April 1 – May 29)

• Active working investigation
• Work & life – integration process
• Individual creation
• Individual working approach

Schedule

• Morning class 9.00-11.30
• Afternoon class Monday to Thursday 12.45-15.30
• Friday afternoon – individual studying

Subjects covered in education

• Movement exploration
• Movement and dance improvisation
• Movement Analysis
• Contact Improvisation – always Tuesday morning class
• Authentic Movement – always Friday class
• Trager Movement® and Trager based bodywork
• Experiential anatomy
• Leading movement processes
• Instructing and facilitating
• Group process and group learning process
• Therapeutic processes in dance
• Movement & technology in audiovisual context
• Mentoring in integrating the somatic approach to professional field

Teachers

• Elina Ikonen (leader of the education) – pedagogy, movement development, dance movement therapy, group learning process, bodywork, Trager Movement® and Authentic Movement
• Lindon Shimizu – experiential anatomy, movement exploration and improvisation, artistic process, Contact Improvisation, Authentic Movement, movement and technology

Visiting teachers

• Visiting teacher (tbc) : one week workshop in module 1
• Katja Mustonen: one week workshop in module 2
• Visiting teacher (tbc): one week in module 3
• Malcolm Manning: one week workshop in module 4 (Feldenkrais Method®, Contact Improvisation, improvisation, experiential anatomy, Authentic Movement)

Further information

Course information is currently being updated.

For further information please contact Elina Ikonen via e-mail elina.ikonen@islo.fi or phone +358503727399.

Information about open courses and the Summer school.

The EU projects we have participated:
LEAP: http://www.idocde.net/pages/56 – Learn, Exchange, Apply, Practice is a 2 year vocational project designed for contemporary dance teachers in Europe, to exchange and discuss relevant practices in teaching methodologies
IDOCDE: http://www.idocde.net/pages/55 International Documentation of Contemporary Dance Education. www.idocde.net