Dance
Specification: AQA-GCSE-Dance
This subject will help you develop key knowledge and skills required for exam success.
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Topics
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Objectives
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Exam Tips
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Pitfalls
Key Features
- Master key concepts
- Develop exam technique
- Apply knowledge effectively
About AQA GCSE Dance
The AQA GCSE Dance course offers an exciting blend of practical and theoretical study, allowing you to develop as a performer, choreographer, and critical thinker. Through the specification, you will explore the expressive and technical demands of different dance styles, learn how to create your own choreography, and gain an in-depth understanding of professional dance works. The course is designed to nurture your creativity, physical skills, and analytical abilities, equipping you with a well-rounded appreciation of dance as an art form.
A key focus is on performance skills, where you will undertake both a solo and a duet/trio performance, demonstrating your ability to interpret and communicate artistic intention. In choreography, you will compose a complete dance piece, either as a solo or a group work, applying the choreographic process from initial research to final evaluation. Alongside this practical work, the written exam component will develop your knowledge of the dance industry, safe practice, and the critical analysis of six professional works spanning a variety of genres and eras.
The specification is structured into two components: Performance and Choreography, and Dance Appreciation. This structure ensures a balance between hands-on creative work and academic study, giving you the opportunity to shine as a dancer while also earning a highly respected GCSE qualification that supports progression to A-level or vocational training.
Assessment Structure
The qualification is assessed through two components. Component 1: Performance and Choreography is worth 60% of the GCSE (80 marks total) and is internally marked by your teacher and externally moderated by AQA. It includes a solo performance (two set phrases instructed by the teacher), a duet/trio performance, and a choreography task (either a solo or a group piece). Component 2: Dance Appreciation is a written exam worth 40% (80 marks), lasting 1 hour 30 minutes, and tests your knowledge, understanding, and critical appreciation of professional works and your own practice. The total GCSE is out of 160 marks.
Why Choose AQA?
- AQA provides a broad and diverse selection of set professional works, giving you exposure to multiple dance styles, choreographers, and cultural contexts, which enriches your learning and prepares you well for higher-level study.
- The specification offers genuine creative freedom in your choreography, allowing you to explore personal themes and styles, which many students find motivating and rewarding.
- AQA is one of the most established and widely offered exam boards in the UK, meaning your school is likely familiar with its requirements and there is a wealth of support materials, past papers, and resources available to help you succeed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Assessment Objectives
Perform dance, reflecting choreographic intention through physical, technical and expressive skills
Create dance, including movement material and aural setting, to communicate choreographic intention
Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of choreographic processes and performing skills
Critically appreciate own works and professional works, through making analytical, interpretive and evaluative judgements
What Gets Top Grades
Knowledge & Understanding
Demonstrates comprehensive and accurate knowledge
- Uses correct subject-specific terminology
- Shows detailed understanding of concepts
- Makes accurate connections between topics
- Demonstrates depth beyond surface-level knowledge
Application
Applies knowledge effectively to new contexts
- Selects relevant knowledge for the question
- Adapts understanding to unfamiliar scenarios
- Uses examples appropriately
- Shows awareness of context
Analysis & Evaluation
Develops sophisticated analytical arguments
- Constructs logical chains of reasoning
- Considers multiple perspectives
- Weighs evidence to reach justified conclusions
- Acknowledges limitations and nuances
Key Command Words
Give a single fact or term
Name, select, or recognise
Set out main features briefly
Give an account of what something is like or what happens
Give reasons with developed cause→effect chains
State similarities AND differences (both required)
Examine in detail showing cause→effect→consequence chains
Weigh up BOTH sides, reach JUSTIFIED conclusion
Make judgments about importance with justification
Show formula→substitution→calculation→answer with units
Specification Topics
No curriculum content available for this specification yet.
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