Dance is a performance art form consisting of purposefully selected sequences of human movement. This movement has aesthetic and symbolic value, and is acknowledged as dance by performers and observers within a particular culture. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire of movements, or by its historical period or place of origin. Dance is basic to human nature and is a basic form of individual and cultural expression. It is pre-verbal, beginning before words can be formed. It is innate in children before they possess command over language and is evoked when thoughts or emotions are too powerful for words to contain. Dance can celebrate play, prayer, courtship, recreation, entertainment, and the human need to communicate the meaning of life in art. Just as all societies create forms of visual representation or organize sounds into music, all cultures organize movement and rhythm into one or more forms of dance. Dance can be a powerful artistic medium for communicating values and beliefs about the human experience. To study the art of dance is to learn the language of bodily movement as it expresses and communicates the essence of humanity. Artistic dance education serves to stimulate conscious understanding of the language of movement and to develop aesthetic knowledge and skill in movement expression. Education in the art of dance provides students with deep, thought-provoking experiences that combine many art forms and disciplines. The act of choreography is akin to sculpting with the human body in mobile space–a visual arts endeavor. Musicality with rhythm, phrasing, and a full partnership with the musical accompaniment is demanded. Dramatic skills and techniques are necessary to choreograph an interesting work and perform it. Learning the art of dance is a full, enriching, and physically joyful experience.