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This chapter explores the role of dance, dance/movement therapy’s core principles, and creative/expressive arts in the psychoeducational development of students in grades six–twelve. Three secondary-school programmes are highlighted: Creative Dance, Creating a Peaceable School, and Mentors in Violence Prevention. These programmes address major adolescent challenges, such as self-esteem, relationship building, empowerment, and bullying prevention, in addition to the promotion of respect for differences and the creation of a supportive community. Examples from these programmes are explored to illustrate how dance, dance/movement therapy principles, and the creative/expressive arts can be used to support secondary-school students’ physical, cognitive, social, emotional, and relational growth. As students experience an embodied form of learning and knowing, the process leads to a more mindful and integrated understanding of themselves and others. The theoretical models that serve as the foundation for this work are discussed along with the results of the school-based evaluations conducted within each programme.

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This programme evaluation study of the Mentors in Violence Prevention (MVP) programme utilizes both quantitative and qualitative data. The findings suggest both student mentors as well as students participating in MVP activities enhance their ability to become active bystanders in the prevention of bullying, sexual harassment and teen dating abuse. Through the Spiral Integrated Learning Process (SILP) inherent in the author's wellness/prevention work in a public high school, the reader will be introduced to the theoretical models and expressive arts activities that promote an embodied knowing or integrated learning in addition to building community that acknowledges differences and supports understanding. Goleman's social and emotional learning theories, the Relational Cultural Theory, along with mindful exercises and recent neuroscience findings reinforce and help to make the SILP more explicit. In addition Laban's idea of 'movement thinking,' informs this work along with the creative use of expressive arts; each builds on the other and spirals forward and backwards helping the students create an embodied knowing, a theoretical and experiential framework for addressing bullying and its prevention.

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