Primary
Ever wonder how those crispy seaweed snacks make their way from the ocean to your hands? In Primary Classrooms 9, 10, and 11, students investigated where food comes from and how it is made. Throughout the winter quarter, I worked with Dr. Christine Lee at CONNECT with Demonstration Teachers Anna Terrazas, Cristina Paul, Nancy Villalta, and Olivia Lozano as we integrated play and movement into learning.
The investigation sparked from a documentary. Students watched the journey of roasted seaweed snacks from ocean harvesting to the final packaged product. They learned about each step, including harvesting, cleaning, drying, cutting, seasoning, baking, and packaging. Instead of simply watching or reading, they turned the process into an embodied experience, bringing it to life through storytelling and creative expression.
To explore the food production cycle, students worked in small groups and used movement to represent each stage. Within each group, students took on the role of seaweed, baker, or packaging worker. Many got creative by using pillows to simulate the drying machines responsible for removing moisture and preparing the seaweed for the next stage of processing. I had the opportunity to observe a group that decided to act out the entire journey together.
The performance began with a student playing the role of a seaweed farmer, carefully harvesting and cleaning the seaweed. The other students played as seaweed and embodied their role by spinning in circles to mimic the motion of being washed. These movements allowed students to experience the process beyond memorization, reinforcing their understanding of abstract concepts by making them more tangible and easier to retain (Clughen, 2024).
As the performance continued, our seaweed farmer began the drying process. The five students who played as the harvested and cleaned seaweed transitioned from standing to lying on the floor as the farmer moved through them, tapping each one while saying “dry.” This sequence depicted the transformation from wet, freshly harvested seaweed to dried sheets.
Next, the seaweed stood up once more, and the farmer began the seasoning stage by chanting “salt” while using both hands as if holding salt, mimicking a sprinkling motion over each student’s head; effectively demonstrating how flavor is added in food processing. The students, embodying the seasoned seaweed, subtly reacted by lowering their heads and tightening their posture, indicating that they absorbed the salt flavor.
The students then returned to the floor to embody the baking process—seaweed snacks undergo heat treatment to achieve their final crisp texture. The transition from standing to lying down again illustrated their understanding that food doesn’t magically appear; it goes through multiple stages of processing before it reaches them. By physically representing different textures and stages of food production, students experienced the transformation process firsthand.
In the final stage of the seaweed dance, the students played as seaweed stood up and compressed together in a tight line to show how seaweed sheets are stacked in packages. The farmer used both hands, moving them from top to bottom along the compressed students, mimicking the motion of sealing the package. This final step concluded the entire process of making seaweed snacks together. Embodying the journey of seaweed snacks as a collective dance activity also highlighted the interconnectedness of each stage in food production.
Embodiment is learning. The students used their bodies to demonstrate the long and complicated process of food production. Furthermore, embodiment fostered collaboration, decision making, and creativity. Each movement was carefully chosen as a deliberate attempt to represent the process in a dynamic and engaging way. As students embodied each stage of harvesting, cleaning, drying, cutting, seasoning, baking, and packaging, they demonstrated a deep understanding of the food production cycle. This highlighted how bodily engagement can reinforce conceptual learning. Additionally, embodied learning fosters a sense of agency and confidence, empowering students to actively construct knowledge rather than passively absorb information (Clughen 2024). I saw this in Room 11 as students worked together to refine their performance, adapting their movements and making decisions as a group to more effectively represent each stage of the process. Their collaboration reflected how learning through movement fosters teamwork and deeper engagement.
The seaweed dance was not just an exercise in performance but an experiential learning tool that merged storytelling, science, and movement. By physically embodying the journey of seaweed snacks from ocean to package, students were able to internalize these complex ideas and develop a more profound appreciation for the food supply chain. Embodiment can be a powerful tool in education, making learning both meaningful and memorable.
Clughen, L. (2024). ‘Embodiment is the future’: What is embodiment and is it the future paradigm for learning and teaching in higher education? Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 61(4), 735-747. https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2023.2215226
Kenneth Nguyen is a fourth-year undergraduate at UCLA majoring in Education & Social Transformation. He is particularly interested in movement-based and experiential learning as ways to make education more engaging and accessible. As a CONNECT Research Intern under Dr. Christine Lee, Kenneth explores how embodiment and hands-on learning deepen student understanding and engagement.
Questions about this blog post can be directed to Dr. Christine Lee (clee@labschool.ucla.edu).