Here are some concepts from a modern dance class I took years ago, up at the University of New Hampshire. These concepts have helped me in learning several different kinds of dance traditions including ballet, scottish, irish and jazz. I remember that this was from an East German school of improvisational modern dance. The school had a name, but I forget it. (If anyone can refresh my memory about this so I can document this better, please email me.)

Movement can begin with any part of your body. For some fun, try initiating a movement with your elbow or your knee. You can follow your wrist around the room if you want, or be led down the stairs by your ear (do be careful.) Be creative! Kneeling can start with your knees-- or you can be dragged to your knees as a result of your forehead lowering until your knees just have to bend.

Try starting movements with your shin, your heel, your nose, your shoulder, your rib cage. The movements can go up, down, left, right, backwards, forewards, clockwise, counter-clockwise...

Okay, so you want to cross the room. Which part of your body is going to start the movement? How about your left shoulder-blade?...

Movement can be broken down into three categories: speed, direction, and force. Like this:

Fast vs. slow
direct vs. indirect
strong vs. delicate

Fast vs. Slow is fairly self-explanatory.

Direct vs. Indirect implies that you follow a path to get where you are going, and the path can either be curvy (indirect) or straight (direct). This path can be defined by the movement of your body-- eg. walking a meandering path or in a straight line-- or by the movement of a body part, like moving your hand (or chin or shoulder or...) through the air.

Strong vs. Delicate indicates the sense of force that the viewer perceives. Delicate movements seem to ride on a puff of air; the dancer seems to have air under their elbows and knees and feet. Their fingers float. (Think tiptoes.) Classical ballet-for-ballerinas emphasises delicacy of movement.

Strong movements are the opposite; they are connected to the earth, pushing against it, very gravity-conscious, momentum-conscious. Dancers push, punch, press, swing, explode. Jazz tends to have an emphasis on strength.

This is not to say that ballerinas aren't strong, or that Jazz dancers aren't light on their feet; the terms "strong" and "delicate" refer to the effect that the viewer percieves.

These descriptions can be combined to describe any movement. (These combinations do have names, but my teacher couldn't remember them all. I have added some guesses of my own. Again, if anyone can help me with this please email me.)

COMBINATIONS:

Slow, direct, and strong: "press"
Slow, direct, and delicate: "glide"
Slow, indirect, and strong: "wring"
Slow, indirect, and delicate: "float"

Fast, direct, and strong: "punch"
Fast, direct, and delicate: "slice"?
Fast, indirect, and strong: "chop"?
Fast, indirect, and delicate: "flick"

Try expirimenting with these! Can you punch with your elbow or glide with your shin? Can you float your chin? How about gliding your rib cage? Have some fun. And then think about how how those motions originate and how you can connect them together.... Wait, I think there's a name for that; don't they call it "Dance"?