The first of two dance sessions exploring the famous story by Hans Christian Andersen.
1. The cunning tricksters
A proud king in a far away land is fooled by two cunning tricksters pretending to be weavers. They claim they can make him some wonderful new clothes that are only visible to people who are wise.
Resources
Download the audio for this dance session as an mp3 file.
Guidance on using the dance sessions in this unit with your group (pdf)
3. The Emperor's New Clothes. audio
Sir Derek Jacobi reads an adaptation of 'The Emperor's new clothes' by Hans Christian Andersen.
Lesson summary
1: Warm up: Striding through the spaces as a proud king with head held high, shoulders back and adding a royal wave to your loyal subjects. Creeping through the spaces as sly tricksters, keeping the body low to the floor and glancing suspiciously from side to side.
2: Tricksters and townsfolk: The class is divided into two groups. âTownsfolkâ perform daily chores like sweeping the floor or digging the garden while âTrickstersâ creep about them looking suspicious. When the music stops, tricksters tiptoe up to the nearest townsfolk, rub their hands together and chuckle as if preparing to play a trick. The groups then swap roles.
3: The King gets dressed: In a space, the children dress themselves in the finest clothes imaginable, stretching arms into expensive silk shirts, pushing legs into trousers, wriggling toes into fine leather boots and adding a sparkling crown for the finishing touch.
4: Weaving: In pairs, as the tricksters, weaving the imaginary cloth. Performing a cyclical movement of stretching out arms and holding the silk between thumb and first finger then meeting hands together and circling them round each other. Children try to copy their partners exactly, as if looking in a mirror.
5: âLook at the wonderful clothâ: Skipping through the spaces in pairs, swirling the cloth high and low to show off the new cloth. The weaving and skipping sequences are put together as more and more people come to look at the cloth that only the wise can see.
6: Cool down: As a member of the Kingâs court, walking slowly through the spaces, sad and puzzled because they canât see the special cloth. Relaxing with deep breaths.
Related units of KS1 Dance: Time to Move
The Brave Tin Soldier. collection
Two sessions exploring Hans Christian Andersen's story about the adventures of a tin soldier.
Alice in Wonderland. collection
Three dance sessions exploring the story Alice in Wonderland through dance.
Pinocchio. collection
A three-part unit taking the famous story of Pinocchio as the inspiration for children's dances.
