Congratulations to Paige Levy of the Kyrene School District for receiving the very first Arizona Health and Physical Education Innovation Award. This award was created to recognize Health, Physical Education or Dance teachers that are using technology, techniques, public relations and the latest fitness trends to inspire all children to develop a lifelong love for exercise.
Over a three year period, Paige developed eighteen unique lessons integrating dance and fundamental movement into grade level content standards. She worked closely with classroom teachers to choose relevant content for each grade level, kindergarten through fifth grade, and
then planned lessons that included opportunities for students to create movement sequences to demonstrate
their content knowledge. Students learned how movement concepts, qualities and rhythm could tell
interpretive stories about.
Paige rose to every challenge with creativity and enthusiasm by researching curricular content, performing arts resources, and the National Standards for Physical Education and Dance. While orchestrating these creative lessons, Paige also continued to teach to the Kyrene
District’s Physical Education Yearly Curriculum which is aligned to Arizona State Physical Education Standards
by implementing Dynamic Physical Education for Elementary School Children Curriculum, The Physical Best,
Paige made learning new content engaging for all students and provided them a way to
deepen their learning and communicate their understanding through movement. Paige planned student
performances as a platform to share how students connect physical activity with content knowledge during
school events including The Celebration of Learning, Pumpkin Walk, and Field Day. She videotaped all lesson
performances and embedded music to share with grade level teachers so that students could celebrate and
evaluate their learning and creativity in the classroom. These performance opportunities provided student’s
creative expression, leadership, and cooperative movement experiences. As part of the Art’s Integrated Team,
she has enthusiastically put into action the research that supports teaching through the arts, including dance
and fundamental movement, is an effective and important part of a well-rounded education.
