Room to move: Our Lady of Mercy College Parramatta dance students Jessica Nash, 16, Bianca Calarco, 15, and Tiana Kokorogiannis, 16. Picture: Gene Ramirez
THE curriculum at Our Lady of Mercy College Parramatta has taken another creative turn with the introduction of dance as an elective for students in years 9 to 12.
Dance, drama and music teacher Isabella Mistry was a pupil at the school when it first introduced drama in 1984.
She returned as a teacher in 2005.
"The girls are really embracing the subject already," she said.
"I got them to do a doodle on a piece of paper to music for two minutes and from that they had to create a dance. They came up with such innovative pieces that were not contrived, but new movement.
"They were so excited by that."
Ms Mistry said classes allowed the students to develop a personal dance style and express anything from comment on social justice concerns to the joy of an amazing holiday through the language of dance.
There are 28 students who have opted to take the elective.
Year 11 dance students Tiana Kokorogiannis, Jessica Nash, and Bianca Calarco have each studied ballet, hip hop, contemporary and other forms of dance outside school from the ages of two and three.
All are excited to study dance within school hours and have found they are now learning more theory — about muscle groups, movement and composition — as well as the technique focused on in outside classes.
"I guess outside of school you're taught the technique and movements whereas here you learn how to improvise," Tiana said. "It's really good."