Books about dance
The spinning, leaping, and graceful motions of dance are an elemental and fervent part of life (Golden, 1999). Dance is an exhilarating and natural way that most young children express happiness and respond to music. George Ancona’s spirited photographs in Let’s Dance (1998) show the joy of dancers from around the world. The book might cultivate some new movement techniques among energetic young readers.
Pictures and words in poems can also stimulate youngsters to dance. Annie attentively listened to My Father until her grandmother came to the page that said, “And I would learn to dance” (Collins, 1989). She propped the book on the sofa and began to twirl about, imitating the dancers in the illustration by Jane Dyer. The rhythm and words of poems about dance can also stimulate young children to do creative movement, as in the example below.

Dance
Dance out of bed,
dance on the floor,
dance down the hallway,
dance out the door.

Dance in the morning,
dance in the night,
dance till the new moon
is out of sight.

Dance all summer,
autumn and spring,
dance through the snowflakes
and don’t forget to sing.

—Eve Merriam in Higgle Wiggle Happy Rhymes

Movement and imagination
Dancing, spinning, hopping, and leaping, young children express their creativity through movement. Imaginative experiences deepen learning and help children come to know the world in many different ways (Silk, 1996). Movement and dance are means of expressing emotion, controlling impulses, and processing thoughts. During active play, children develop self-awareness, critical thinking, and physical and mental engagement (Brown and Pleydell, 1999).
Play, by its very nature, has an imaginative, “as if” quality (Johnson, Christie, and Yawkey, 1999). Because young children cannot easily separate thinking from action, movement and dramatic play become their vehicles for learning and self-expression (Brown and Pleydell, 1999). For children, the powers of imagination and emotion are more highly developed than reasoning ability (Bettelheim and Zeman, 1982). Through motion and play, they come to understand their world and attempt to communicate with others. In pantomime, gesture, and dance “motion embodie[s] emotion” (Wolf and Heath, 1992). Thus, children learn on many levels simultaneously—physical, emotional, cognitive, and creative (Griss, 1998).
Because of their natural propensity for active learning, young children often come to understand literature by participating through movement (Wolf and Heath, 1992). The concept of a story becomes meaningful to the child who acts out a scene from a book or takes on the role of a character.

Book-related dramatic play
When children act out stories from books, they demonstrate their understanding of the text or illustrations (Rowe, 1998). Dramatizing stories allows children to manage their fears, develop values, and learn about their own and other cultures. Sometimes children even seem to develop a deeper understanding of a book than the author intended (Paley, 1997). Each child infers an individual understanding of the literature they hear, based on their unique personalities and experiences. Through their actions, children bring stories to life and compare their own experiences to the experiences of characters in books.
An important developmental issue for preschoolers is learning to understand and cope with fears (Bettelheim, 1976). The first time Nate and his mom read Goldilocks and the Three Bears (Brett, 1987) Nate became afraid and didn’t want to hear it again for several weeks. Then one day when the family made porridge (oatmeal), Nate assigned each person their “bear parts,” giving himself the logical role of baby bear. Although he seemed a little fearful at first, he soon asked that his mom and dad join him in dramatizing the story again. He also suggested that a family friend who happened to have blonde hair might like to come and play Goldilocks. Through book-related dramatic play, Nate not only mastered his anxiety about the story but also came to understand the roles of the characters by relating them to his own family members and friends.
Sometimes an incident that occurs during play reminds a child of a similar event in a book. Once when Grace was trying to put a doll on a toy horse, the doll fell off. Seeing the doll fall reminded Grace of the time Lucy tumbled out of the tree in Little Bear’s Friend (Minarik, 1960). She held up the doll and said, “This is Lucy, and I am Emily, and (pointing to her mother) you can be Little Bear. You have to fix Lucy’s arm. Get some tape.” After Mom mended the doll’s pretend break, she announced, “Now it’s time for owl’s birthday party.” Grace said, “yes” and they went into the kitchen to play birthday party.
When 2-year-old Marie was restless one evening, her mom and grandma decided to make her into a pizza. First they read Pete’s a Pizza (Steig, 1998). Then Mom rolled Marie like pizza dough, stretched her arms and legs (a gentle massage), and patted her all over. Next Mom sprinkled cheese and pepperoni (torn paper) on Marie’s tummy and carried her to the oven (sofa). Marie’s eyes were closed, but her mouth could not contain the giggles as the adults went about the dramatic enactment. After letting Marie bake for two seconds, Mom removed Marie from the oven and sliced (using hand motions) her into pieces. When Marie felt the last slice, she jumped up laughing and went on about her play.
For Nate, Grace, Marie, and many other young children, physically enacting stories is a way to learn about books and themselves. The kinesthetic experience of reliving the story through dramatization brings characters to life, and builds lasting connections to literature (Gilles, Andre, Dye, and Pfannensteil, 1998).
Book-related dramatic play, as well as other forms of play, is particularly beneficial for children with language and/or cognitive delays because it provides an opportunity for meaningful verbal communication (Morado, Koenig, and Wilson, 1999). Children are introduced to new vocabulary in stories that they, in turn, can practice during their enactments.
Many children with delays feel more comfortable speaking within the safety of a dramatic role. Mini-performances of predictable stories—for example, Caps for Sale (Slobodkina, 1947), The Gunniwolf (Harper, 1967), and simple folk tales—help children develop an understanding of setting, story structure, and the personality of characters. When helped by a teacher who facilitates without over-directing, children can learn to use their imaginations and cooperate with others to meet a goal.
As you prepare for story time, keep in mind children’s need for physical activity and the benefits of teaming literature with movement and dramatic play. Instead of telling children to sit down quietly to listen to a book, invite them to join you in a more exuberant response like bouncing, swaying, or galloping to literature! You might be surprised by new enthusiasm for story time and progress in comprehension and vocabulary.

References
Benelli, C. and B. Yongue. “Supporting young children’s motor skill development.” Childhood Education 71 (1995) 217-220.
Bettelheim, B. and K. Zelan. On Learning to Read: The Child’s Fascination with Meaning. New York: Knopf, 1982.
Bettelheim, B. The Uses of Enchantment. New York: Vintage Books, 1976.
Brown, V. and S. Pleydell. The Dramatic Difference. Portsmouth, N.H.: Heinemann, 1999.
Caine, R. N. and G. Caine. Education on the Edge of Possibility. Alexandria, Va.: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 1997.
Gardner, H. Multiple Intelligences: The Theory in Practice. New York: Basic Books, 1993.
Gardner, H. Intelligence Reframed: Multiple Intelligences for the 21st Century. New York: Basic Books, 1999.
Gilles, C., M. Andre, C. Dye, and V. Pfannensteil. “Constant connections through literature—using art, music, and drama.” Language Arts 76 (1998) 67-75.
Golden, S. L. “Dancing days.” Book Links 8 (1999) 46-49.
Griss, S. Minds in Motion. Portsmouth, N.H.: Heinemann, 1998.
Hannaford, C. Smart Moves. Arlington, Va.: Great Ocean Publishing Co., 1995.
Jensen, E. Teaching with the Brain in Mind. Alexandria, Va.: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 1998.
Johnson, J. E., J. F. Christie, and T. Yawkey. Play and Early Childhood Development. (2nd edition). New York: Addison Wesley Longman, 1999.
Landalf, H. and P. Gerke. Movement Stories for Children Ages 3-6. Lyme, N.H.: Smith and Kraus, 1996.
Martens, F. “Daily physical education—A boon to Canadian elementary schools.” Journal of Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance 53 (1982) 55-58.
Morado, C., R. Koenig, and A. Wilson. “Mini-performances, many stars! Playing with stories.” Reading Teacher 53 (1999) 116-123.
Paley, V. The Girl with the Brown Crayon. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1997.
Piaget, J. Play, Dreams, and Childhood. New York: Norton, 1962.
Pica, R. “Beyond physical development: Why young children need to move.” Young Children 52 (1997) 4-11.
Rowe, D. “The literate potentials of book-related dramatic play.” Reading Research Quarterly 33 (1998) 10-35.
Silk, G. “Dance, the imagination, and three-dimensional learning.” In Vandergrift, K. (ed.) Ways of Knowing: Literature and the Intellectual Life of Children. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 1996.
Wolf, S. A. and S. Heath. The Braid of Literature. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1992.

Children’s books cited
Aliki. Digging Up Dinosaurs. New York: HarperCollins, 1981.
Ancona, G. Let’s Dance. New York: Morrow Junior Books, 1998.
Bang, M. When Sophie Gets Angry…Really, Really Angry. New York: Blue Sky Press, 1999.
Brett, J. Goldilocks and the Three Bears. New York: Dodd and Mead, 1987.
Burningham, J. Mr. Gumpy’s Outing. New York: Holt, Rhinehart, and Winston, 1970.
Carle, E. From Head to Toe. New York: HarperCollins. 1997.
Carlson, L. M. Sol a Sol. New York: Henry Holt, 1998.
Cauley, L. B. Clap Your Hands. New York: G. T. Putnam’s Sons, 1992.
Collins, J. My Father. New York: Little Brown, 1989.
Crews, D. Carousel. New York: Greenwillow, 1982.
Cummings, P. My Aunt Came Back. New York: HarperCollins, 1998.
Curtis, J. Today I Feel Silly. New York: HarperCollins, 1998.
Elhert, L. Market Day. New York: Harcourt Brace, 2000.
Emberly, E. and A. Miranda. Glad Monster, Sad Monster: A Book About Feelings. Boston: Little Brown, 1997.
Falconer, I. Olivia. New York: Atheneum, 2000.
Falwell, C. A Feast for 10. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1993.
Harper, W. The Gunniwolf. New York: Dutton, 1967.
Henkes, K. Jessica. New York: Penguin, 1989.
Hoffman, M. Amazing Grace. New York: Dial, 1991.
Hubbell, P. Bouncing Time. New York: HarperCollins, 2000.
Martin, B. and J. Archambault. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1989.
McDermott, G. Anansi the Spider. New York: Holt, Rhinehart and Winston, 1972.
Merriam, E. Higgle Wiggle Happy Rhymes. New York: William Morrow, 1994.
Minarik, E. H. Little Bear’s Friend. New York: Harper and Row, 1960.
Marzollo, J. Pretend You’re a Cat. New York: Penguin, 1990.
Newcome, Z. Toddlerobics. Cambridge, Mass.: Candlewick Press, 1999.
Noll, S. Jiggle, Wiggle, Prance. New York: Penguin, 1987.
Prelutsky, J. Read Aloud Rhymes for the Very Young. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1986.
Reid, R. Wave Goodbye. New York: Lee and Lowe, 1996.
Rosen, M. Poems for the Very Young. New York: Kingfisher Books, 1993.
Sendak, M. Where the Wild Things Are. New York: Harper and Row, 1963.
Shannon, D. No, David! New York: Scholastic, 1998.
Sharmat, M. W. Sasha the Silly. New York: Holiday House, 1984.
Slobodkina, E. Caps for Sale. New York: Harper and Row, 1947.
Steig, W. Pete’s a Pizza. New York: HarperCollins, 1998.
Stevens, J. and S. Crummel, Cook-a-doodle-doo! San Diego: Harcourt Brace, 1999.
Wheeler, B. Where Did You Get Your Moccasins? Winnipeg: Peguis, 1986.
Wilmer, I. The Baby’s Game Book. New York: HarperCollins, 2000.
Wilson-Max, K. L Is for Loving: An ABC Book for the Way You Feel. New York: Hypernion, 1999.

About the author
Connie Green is a professor in the Reading and Birth through Kindergarten programs at Appalachian State University where she teaches courses in emergent literacy and children’s literature. A former preschool and kindergarten teacher, she continues to enjoy reading aloud and moving with young children.