Performance (Component 1) - AQA GCSE Dance: the skills, the assessment and how to score

Component 1, Performance, is the first of the two components in AQA GCSE Dance (specification 8236) and is worth 40% of the qualification. It is a practical component, assessed by a visiting AQA examiner, in which you perform set phrases as a solo and a duet or group dance. This guide maps the skills assessed, the assessment itself, and how to score well.

What you perform

In Component 1 you perform two pieces:

• Set phrases - choreography supplied by AQA, learned and performed as a solo. They are designed to test a wide spread of physical and technical skills.
• A duet or group performance - a dance of around three minutes performed with one or more other dancers, testing your ability to relate to others as well as your individual skills.

The component is marked out of 80 and assessed by an external AQA examiner.

The four groups of skills

Every performance is judged on four groups of skills, each with its own dot point page.

Physical skills are the trainable bodily abilities: posture, alignment, balance, coordination, control, flexibility, mobility, strength, stamina, extension and isolation. They make movement controlled, safe and accurate.

Technical skills are the accuracy of the movement content: the right action, dynamics, space and relationships, performed with precise timing. This is about reproducing the choreography faithfully.

Expressive skills are how you communicate: projection, focus, spatial awareness, facial expression, phrasing, musicality and sensitivity to other dancers. They turn execution into performance.

Mental skills support all of this: movement memory, commitment, concentration, confidence, systematic repetition and mental rehearsal.

Safe practice

The examiner expects safe practice throughout: warming up and cooling down, correct posture and alignment, safe execution of lifts and contact, and appropriate clothing and footwear. Safe technique protects you from injury and is part of good performance.

Exam structure

• Component 1, Performance - 40% of the GCSE, marked out of 80, assessed by a visiting AQA examiner.
• You perform set phrases as a solo and a duet or group dance of around three minutes.
• The examiner judges physical, technical, expressive and mental skills, and safe practice.

How to score well

1. Be accurate. Reproduce the set phrases and your dance exactly, in time and in the right space (technical skills).
2. Train the body. Strong physical skills make movement controlled, safe and clean.
3. Communicate, do not just execute. Use expressive skills so the audience reads the meaning.
4. Use mental skills. Movement memory and concentration stop slips; commitment lifts the whole performance.
5. Work safely. Warm up, cool down and use correct alignment throughout.

The component, dot point by dot point

Each skill area has a specification-level answer page with practice questions and cross-links. Test yourself with the performance overview quiz.

For the official specification

AQA publishes the full specification (8236), set phrase resources and assessment guidance at aqa.org.uk. Always revise from the current specification and AQA's own resources, because assessment detail is board-specific.