NDI delivers arts programming of unsurpassed quality through our long-term partnerships with schools in the NYC metro area. Schools and families take great pride in the excellence their students achieve in NDI, and teaching artists develop collaborative relationships with principals and classroom teachers that deeply root arts education in a school’s culture and curriculum.

The goal of every NDI program is to foster belonging, success, creativity, and joy for individual students and within school communities across NYC.

NDI reaches thousands of students annually through in-school residencies, advanced scholarship programs, inclusive programming for children with disabilities, teaching artist trainings, and public performances. The centerpiece of NDI’s programming, the In-School Program is taught by teams of three teaching artists—two dance teacher/choreographers, and a music/accompanist—who teach collaboratively to ensure deep and authentic learning in the art form and success for every child.

NDI classes take place during the school day and are integrated into the curriculum, ensuring that the arts are an essential component of learning in our partner school communities. NDI primarily serves elementary (K-5) schools; all students in a selected grade or grades participate in the program. In the school year, more than 6,500 students will participate in NDI classes each week through our more than 45 school partnerships across the New York City region.

Most programs meet once per week for the duration of the school year (28 sessions); some are semester-long (ten-session) or half-year residencies. Students learn fundamentals of dance and music and gain a range of critical life and social-emotional skills. A well-defined and established program structure ensures that teaching artists develop close working relationships with classroom teachers, and that students connect their NDI learning to the wider school curriculum. Every NDI class includes live music, a crucial piece of our unique methodology. NDI’s programs culminate in celebratory performances of artistic quality in which students take the stage to share their achievements with their peers, their families, and the larger community.

Program Structure

• Every class is taught by three professional teaching artists: Two Teacher/Choreographers and a Musician/Accompanist.
• NDI provides in-school programs for students in kindergarten through fifth grade.
• NDI offers full-year programs consisting of weekly classes throughout the school year (October through May/June). We also offer 10-session residencies, which can take the form of a 2-week intensive or a 10-week program.
• NDI classes take place during the school day, ensuring that dance is integral to learning in our partner school communities.
• NDI programming is inclusive; all students in a selected grade or grades participate in the program.
• Classroom teachers are actively engaged in the program, helping to connect learning in NDI with the larger curriculum. Many choose to dance with their classes.
• NDI works with a single classroom of children at a time, and classes generally run 45–50 minutes (an instructional period). Each moment of an NDI class is rich with energetic, rigorous, and joyful learning.
• All NDI programs include live music and culminate in a final performance, a celebratory event that brings together the school community.

Fundamentals of Dance

Students learn the fundamentals of movement and music by mastering choreography with clarity, energy, and precision. They learn the value of excellence in dance and the importance of discipline, effort, focus, and teamwork. Students also hone their critical and creative thinking as their dance skills develop.

Curricular Theme

Each year, NDI selects a curricular theme that guides the learning in all partner schools. Past themes have explored science, literacy, musical genres, visual art, global studies, and social activism. . Through the theme, NDI introduces students to new cultures and big ideas, fostering in them an abiding curiosity about the world and their place in it. As they work toward a common performance goal, students learn how dance and music create meaning, build community, and move audiences.

Final Performance

In the culminating performance, students take to the stage to become stars in their own community. NDI’s teaching artists create original pieces of choreography and arrange music inspired by the curricular theme. Students master and perform these dances for their families and the entire school community in a fully-realized theatrical production—complete with an ensemble of musicians, colorful backdrops, and costumes designed by the children.

Please fill out an application form to become an NDI partner school. For more information, contact Hannah Bailenson at hbailenson@nationaldance.org.