At a Glance

Hit the books and the dance floor this summer as you learn about the history of New York City’s diverse population and rich immigrant cultures through the lens of dance! Experience and practice multiple engagement strategies and write lessons that engage your students through music, dance, cultural studies, and history. Suitable for educators of all grades—and requiring no prior dance experience—this course is inspired by the award-winning exhibitions and programs of the Museum of the City of New York. 

• In-Person, 3 A+/P Credits, 45 CTLE Hours
• Monday, August 10–Saturday, August 15, 2026, 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. daily
• $295 Museum Fee; $125 ASPDP Fee

Course Description

This course will use dance, music, and other forms of creative expression as entry points for examining case studies of 20th- and 21st-century immigration and community development in New York City. These case studies reflect the current top ten countries of origin of immigrants in New York City: Dominican Republic, China, Jamaica, Mexico, Ecuador, Guyana, Bangladesh, Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago, and India [Source: 2025 Annual Report on New York City’s Immigrant Population and Initiatives of the Office, NYC Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs].

Developed in alignment with culturally responsive and sustaining education principles (CR-SE), Culture in Motion tells the story of our city through the lens of individuals and communities who mirror New York City students today. Throughout this course, participants will learn directly from dance instructors, guest speakers, curators, and Museum educators. This course equips participants with the tools to recognize and affirm their students’ intersectional identities by centering and cultivating students’ experiences and expertise.

This course is run by the Frederick A.O. Schwarz Education Center at the Museum of the City of New York and is supported by the Museum’s award-winning exhibitions. 

The Museum of the City of New York is a CTLE-certified provider. Participation in this program provides 45 hours of CTLE credit and 3 P Credits/A+ Credits.  

For registration instructions and information about A+/P Credits through ASPDP, please scroll down to Registration below. 

Course Calendar & Details  

Culture in Motion is an in-person course that runs from Monday, August 10 through Saturday, August 15, 2026. The course takes place at the Museum of the City of New York, located at 1220 Fifth Avenue at 103rd Street in Manhattan.  

Schedule: Monday–Saturday, 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. daily

A light breakfast of coffee, bagels, and pastries will be provided daily.  

All course materials are provided. A full course schedule will be posted by June 30, 2026. 

Registration

Registration for Culture in Motion is a two-step process for those taking the course for A+/P Credit. (Educators interested in taking this course not for A+/P Credit are welcome to do so and only need to complete Step 1.) All eligible educators receive CTLE credit for the course hours. 

Step 1 

Register with the Museum for Culture in Motion using the "Register" button at the top of this page and pay the Museum's course fee of $295. 

Step 2

Register through the ASPDP portal for Culture in Motion: Teaching NYC Immigration History Through Dance and pay the NYC DOE ASPDP course fee of $125. Registration for this course closes at 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, August 9, 2025.

Participant Policies

Participants must register for a course with both ASPDP and the Museum of the City of New York in order to be eligible to receive A+/P Credits. ASPDP has a strict registration deadline; participants who do not register for ASPDP by the deadline will not be eligible for A+/P credit.   

Participants must follow the attendance requirements as outlined in the ASPDP guidelines. If you have questions or concerns about your attendance, please email us directly to discuss.  

Norms of Behavior 

To maintain a respectful and productive learning environment, all participants are expected to adhere to our professional learning norms of behavior, including active engagement, mutual respect, and open-minded collaboration. We reserve the right to remove any participant whose behavior disrupts the learning experience or violates these norms. 

The Museum follows ASPDP's academic integrity policy for all its A+/P Credit courses. To view ASPDP's academic integrity policy, please click here. 

Need to Cancel? 

The Museum of the City of New York ("the Museum") offers refunds of its educational partner fee for A+/P Credit courses if a participant requests to withdraw from their registered course at least three (3) business days in advance of the registration deadline for that course. 

Participants must contact ASPDP to receive a refund for the ASPDP course fee. To view the policy for ASPDP course fee refunds, please click here.  

If a participant must withdraw from a Museum A+/P Credit course after the first day of the course, the Museum offers participants the value of the course as a credit for future MCNY education programming.