American Ballroom Companion
Do you know the Butterfly Dance, how about the Heel-and-Toe Polka or the Argentine Tango. This site from the Library of Congress contains a collection of over two hundred social dance manuals from 1490-1920 along with 75 video clips that illustrate portions of the dance instruction manuals.
Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle/High School Teacher Section: No Searchable: Yes

  Curriculum Standard 5

Recognize and demonstrate dance in various cultures and historical periods.

Proficiency Standards
By the end of grade four students will be able to:

• Examine dance from a particular culture and time period.
• Identify ways that dance has been a continuous part of the history of human culture.

Proficiency Standards
By the end of grade eight students will be able to:

• Understand the evolution of twentieth century American social and theatrical dance, such as the Charleston, the Lindy, tap, jazz and modern and perform basic movements.
• Learn folk and social dances from a variety of cultures or time periods, utilizing resources from the community.
• Identify the role of dance in different cultures or time periods.

Proficiency Standards
By the end of grade twelve students will be able to:

• Perform and describe similarities and differences among a broad spectrum of folk, social, and/or theatrical dances or dance forms from the 20th century.
• Perform or discuss the traditions and techniques of folk forms, such as Morris dance, Irish step dance or American Hopi Indian dance, placing each in an historical or cultural context.

Additional Proficiency Standards Grades 9-12
In addition to the above, students will be able to:

• Compare the role and significance of dance and dancers in North America with other cultures, considering the historical period and social/political contexts.