West Coast DanceFit is a company designed to promote a healthy lifestyle, physical activity and creativity in K-12 students through the art of dance.
West Coast DanceFit also provides new and innovative ways to help students build successful learning strategies that can be used in other curricular areas.
Our instructors provide students with the tools to embrace movement, creativity and performance. Through dance we explore other culture and traditions to contribute and celebrate a wonderful world of diversity and culture.
Our workshops focus on the enhancement of self-esteem and encourages
students to reach their own creative, expressive and physical potential.
The West Coast DanceFit program is specifically designed to motivate and influence students today to make good choices, have strong values and healthy lifestyles.
About
West Coast DanceFit
West Coast DanceFit is a company designed to promote a healthy lifestyle, physical activity and creativity in K-12 students through the art of dance.
West Coast DanceFit also provides new and innovative ways to help students build successful learning strategies that can be used in other curricular areas.
Our instructors provide students with the tools to embrace movement, creativity and performance. Through dance we explore other culture and traditions to contribute and celebrate a wonderful world of diversity and culture.
Our workshops focus on the enhancement of self-esteem and encourages
students to reach their own creative, expressive and physical potential.
The West Coast DanceFit program is specifically designed to motivate and influence students today to make good choices, have strong values and healthy lifestyles.
Program Overview
Join Our Dance Community
West Coast DanceFit is a program specifically designed in a fun and engaging manner
to adopt to the Prescribed Learning Outcomes guideline for Dance and Physical Education.
Teachers will introduce students to the core principles and skills of various styles of movement related to dance.
The routines will incorporate a variety of sequenced movements that use different levels and dynamics.
General space and body awareness will be utilized throughout the program in order to facilitate a safe and organized program.
Students will be introduced to a variety of dance styles including Latin and Hip Hop, among many others. The program will highlight the steps and skills of these styles, as well as their use and recognition in society.
Rehearsal and performance skills can be implemented if time permits, however the nature of the learning process allows for much repetition and group demonstrations.
The classes start off with a warm-up with stretching and aerobic exercises. The instructor will then lead a lesson in the style of dance and various aspects of the curriculum will be covered depending on the time given for the class
Dance PLOs
Dance PLOs:
moving in response to a variety of sounds, music, images, and feelings movement sequences based on patterns, characters, themes, and topics use of the creative process to create dance creative process, with emphasis on refining and reflecting
elements of movement in a variety of combinations
principles of movement moving in a variety of levels, pathways, dynamics, and directions using a variety of body shapes
moving in time to rhythms, metres, and tempi demonstrating techniques associated with particular dance styles
moving safely in personal space and general space applying safety and health considerations to dance personal opportunities for lifelong participation in dance similarities and differences among dances reasons people dance comparing dances from a variety of contexts rehearsing dance for specific performance settings
willingness to rehearse and perform dance performance skills
analyzing own and others choreography and performances
Melissa Leifer
Melissa graduated from the University of British Colombia and holds a Bachelor of Education Degree. She has worked in numerous school around Canada and has been teaching in various capacities for over 10 years. She is currently on faculty at Capilano University where she teachers workshops in audition preparation, yoga, nutrition and dance in the Musical Theatre Program.
She began dancing at the age of 4 in Jazz, Tap, Ballet, Pointe, Partnering, Acrobatics, Modern and Musical Theatre. After receiving countless awards, scholarships and titles during her training, she attended Ryerson University and graduated with a BFA (Honours) in Theatre Dance under the direction of former principal dancer with the National Ballet of Canada Nadia Potts. While at Ryerson she successfully attained her Intermediate/Advanced Ballet Certificate from the Royal Academy of Dance. She went on to receive extensive training at Broadway Dance Centre in New York City and The Edge in L.A and broke into the Entertainment Industry across Canada.
Former Miss Intercontinental Canada, Melissa has danced professionally in Canada, Europe as well as the United States. She has worked with Drayton Entertainment in several of their musical productions, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line as a featured dancer and adagio partner, assistant choreographer and featured dancer for Walt Disney Canada.
Melissa's other performance experiences include numerous industrial trade shows, fashion shows, film and television. You may have also seen her in commercials for Trident chewing gum as well as Casio watches, among others. More recently, Melissa filmed Hairspray with New Line Cinemas featuring John Travolta, Queen Latifah and Michelle Pheiffer.
