Photo: Sherron Burns

Ashley has worked as a teaching artist in SK Arts funded residencies, and projects for the past nine years. She has been influenced by the work of arts educator Sherron Burns through a long-term partnership with Living Sky School Division. Under mentorship and collaboration with educators she seeks to create meaningful creative experiences for teachers and students. Attempting to create a feedback loop to her own interest in creativity and the moving body she honours diverse world view and daily movement breaks as a way to establish emotional, physical, and cognitive self regulation.

Trained in BrainDance by Anne Green Gilbert Ashley specializes in creating developmentally appropriate, curriculum approved dance classes.

Ashley has been a guest lecturer in Dance Education at University of Calgary and University of Regina. In 2021 she partnered with Regina Catholic Schools to create dance and somatic education programming aimed to improve resiliency in early years students during the pandemic.

Ashley is available for workshops, residencies, classes and lectures.

Email for specific rates.

SK ARTS – Artists in Schools Project

Dancing in Times of Uncertainty

This documentary demonstrates how dance and somatic movement can be used as a tool to improve resiliency, while creating calm and regulated classrooms.

Using BrainDance, live music and somatic movement strategies kindergarten teachers and students embark on an artist in schools project that tests everyones capacity for flexibility in the midst of constant change.

See Early Years Teacher Resources for dance lesson PDF, video and music.

Funded by SK Arts and RCSD (Regina Catholic School Division), this documentary was created by Gordon West.

Blog

Dance Education Blog Collaboration

with Living Sky School Division 2011 – 15

Visit Blog

Early Years Teacher Resources

Dance Lessons

Music for Creative Dance

by Jeff Romanyk

Video

Early Years Dance Lesson

A five-part creative dance lesson using the concept ‘body parts’.

Videography by Cat & Rooster Media Productions

1 – Warm up
2 – Exploring the Concept
3 – Skill Development
4 – Creating
5 – Cool Down

BrainDance

BrainDance is a set of eight developmental movement patterns that babies go through first year of life that wire the brain and nervous system. Our social, emotional, physical, and intellectual development depends on the successful wiring of the brain.

Videography by Cat & Rooster Media Productions

Rhymes on the Floor
Rhymes on a Chair
Cross Lateral Pattern
Crawling, Creeping, Walking
Standing

Somatic Movement

This series of breath and sound exercises was inspired by Continuum Movement.

Videography by Cat & Rooster Media Productions

Sounding for Self-regulation