Key Stage 2 PE · Dance

KS2 dance in PE: movement patterns and sequences

In Key Stage 2 dance, children move beyond copying steps and learn to build and perform dances using a range of movement patterns. They link individual actions into sequences, change speed, level and direction, and work with a partner or group. The curriculum asks them to keep developing and combining their skills, so dance becomes something they plan, rehearse, perform and improve.

Dance and movement patterns, explained

At Key Stage 1 children respond to music and copy simple patterns. From Year 3 the expectation grows: the National Curriculum asks pupils to perform dances using a range of movement patterns, and to apply a broader range of skills in different ways, linking them into actions and sequences. In practice a dance lesson is usually part learning, part creating: the teacher introduces an idea, the children try it, and then they make something of their own from it.

A movement pattern is a deliberate way of organising actions. Common ones include repeating a movement, doing it in unison (everyone at once), in canon (one after another, like a round in music), mirroring a partner, or call and response, where one dancer or group moves and another answers. Children also learn about formations, such as lines, circles and scattered groups, and about moving at different levels, high, middle and low. The curriculum does not list particular patterns or styles, so schools choose, and your child might meet folk dances, street styles, dances from other cultures or dances that tell a story.

To build a sequence, children first make a motif, a short phrase of movement, often eight counts long. They change it by altering the speed, size, direction or level, and then link it to other motifs with a travelling step or a turn so that the dance flows. Teachers often describe what the body does, where it goes, how the movement feels (fast and sharp, or slow and smooth) and who it moves with. Those ideas give children words to plan, describe and improve.

Performing matters too. Children learn to start in a still position, move in time with the music, hold a shape at the end, and show confidence and expression. Afterwards they are asked to watch each other and say what worked, what they would change and how they could improve. This ties to the wider PE aim that pupils learn to evaluate and recognise their own success. Dance also builds fitness, balance and coordination, so it counts towards the daily activity children need.

Words your child will hear

Motif: A short phrase of movement that a dance is built from, which can be repeated and changed.
Unison: Dancers doing exactly the same movement at the same time.
Canon: Dancers doing the same movement one after another, starting at different times.
Mirroring: Facing a partner and copying their movements as if they were a reflection.
Formation: The shape a group makes on the floor, such as a line, circle or scattered group.
Level: How high or low the body is: high (standing or jumping), middle, or low (near the floor).
Transition: The movement that links one action or section to the next so the dance flows.

What the National Curriculum says

The programme of study for Key Stage 2 says:

Pupils should be taught to perform dances using a range of movement patterns
Pupils should continue to apply and develop a broader range of skills, learning how to use them in different ways and to link them to make actions and sequences of movement.

Objectives from the National Curriculum in England, © Crown copyright, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Try it: building a short dance about a storm

A group of four children is asked to make a 24-count dance called “storm”, using at least two movement patterns. How could they go about it?

Collect ideas. The group suggests storm actions: swirling wind, falling rain, a flash of lightning, thunder rumbling. They choose three and try each as a movement: a spin with arms reaching out, quick tiny steps with fingers fluttering down, and a sudden sharp jump into a wide star shape.
Make a motif. They put the three actions in order to make one eight-count phrase: spin for 3 counts, rain steps for 3 counts, lightning jump for 2 counts. This is the motif.
Choose patterns. For the first eight counts all four dancers do the motif in unison. Next they split into two pairs and perform it in canon: the first pair starts on count 1 and the second pair starts four counts later, so the movement ripples across the space like rolling thunder. The second pair finishes four counts after the first, so this section lasts 12 counts, and the dance has reached 20 counts.
Change it and finish. For the last four counts everyone slows the movement right down, sinks to a low level and freezes in a curled shape as the storm dies away. Eight counts of unison, 12 of canon and 4 of ending make 24 counts in all.
Link and rehearse. They decide where each person stands at the start and how they will move into the next formation, then practise until everyone starts, changes and stops together, and give each other one thing to improve.

The finished dance has a clear beginning (unison), a middle (canon) and an ending (slow, low and still), using a motif that is repeated and changed. A child might say: “We started together, then ripples of movement went across the group, and at the end we slowed down and went low to show the storm fading.”

Common mistakes and how to help

Thinking dance means learning set steps and copying the best dancer

Much of what children see of dance at home is a performance of fixed steps, so they assume there is one right way to move.

What helps: Show that in school dance children make their own movements and choose how to link them. Ask “what could you change to make it your own?” rather than “is that right?”.

Moving all the time at the same speed

Children often keep going once they have started, and fast movement feels more like dancing than still moments.

What helps: Try freezing the music and holding a shape, or doing the same movement fast and then very slowly. Contrast, such as fast and slow or big and small, is what makes dance interesting to watch.

Dropping out of time with the music or with other dancers

Counting and watching others at once is hard. Children focus on their own moves and drift away from the beat.

What helps: Practise finding the steady beat by clapping or marching first, then count the eight beats aloud. For group work, pick a dancer to lead the count.

Jumping from one move to the next with no link, so the dance looks like a list of tricks

Children can learn separate movements quite quickly but have not yet thought about how to join them.

What helps: Ask “how do you get from this move to that?” and encourage a travelling step, a turn or a change of level to join them. Run the whole sequence without stopping.

How to help at home

Find the beat. Choose a piece of music with a steady pulse and clap along, then march, then make a simple movement on each beat. Counting eight beats aloud is a good first step to making a motif.
Make a motif. Ask your child to invent three movements, such as a stretch, a spin and a stamp, and put them in an order of eight counts. Practise it until it flows, then try it slowly, quickly, small and large.
Mirror and follow. Face each other and take turns to lead while the other copies, like a mirror. Then try canon: you do a movement and your child copies it a few counts later. Both patterns develop the attention that group dance needs.
Dance a story or a place. Read a short poem or story and turn a line into movement, or ask for a dance about the sea, the jungle or a robot. This is how many classroom dances begin.
Perform and review. Let your child show the family their dance, and ask what they were pleased with and what they would change. Clear a safe space and move furniture aside. On smooth floors, bare feet or socks with grip are safer than ordinary socks, which slip.

Builds on

Key Stage 1: Dance: moving to music
Key Stage 1: Simple dance patterns

Leads on to

Key Stage 3: Dance techniques and styles

Everything in Key Stage 2 PE

Updated 20 October 2026.