Musical Balances
Develop the skills of balancing, running, jumping, hopping, and skipping through music. An excellent activity for larger groups, can be delivered as a classroom brain break or outdoors. Great to incorporate KIDDO resources, like the Balance Dice or Animal Balance Pose Cards.
Designate a playing space large enough for children to move freely in or if playing in the classroom, have everyone standing up. The educator has a music player. Prepare or find a playlist (search KIDDO_AU on Spotify for some great child friendly playlists). Ideas include 'Roar Like a Dinosaur', and 'Do the Hullabaloo' by Justine Clarke, 'Everywhere’s a Dancefloor' and 'I Like to Move It' from the movie 'Madagascar'.
Step 1:
- Children move around the space doing the locomotor skill that the educator calls out, such as galloping, running backward, hopping, etc. If in a classroom, try marching on the spot, making windmill arms, tiny jumps and running on the spot.
Step 2:
- When the music stops, children must freeze and then go and stand on a marker and make a balance like the animal pose that the educator is holding up (download the animal balance cards in the resources section of the website here), or copy the pose the educator is doing
- Ideas for poses include:
- Turtle
- Giraffe
- Snake
- Lion
- Dog
- Flamingo
- Monkey
Step 3:
- Once everyone has balanced, the educator plays the music again and the children continue moving around the space, completing a new locomotor skill
- You don't need to use markers, children can choose to stand where they feel comfortable trying to balance
- Stack instructions, such as "Balance like a flamingo, then run to the tree and eat the leaves off the tree like a giraffe"
Ask children if anyone has played Musical Statues – then explain that in Musical Balances when the music stops you have to freeze and then go and stand on a marker and make a balance like one of the animal poses. Explore ways to maintain your balance, by explaining the teaching cues of;
- Head up
- Eyes forward looking at something ahead of them e.g., tree
- Let a child have a turn at choosing an animal to balance as
- Get an idea of what music your group likes - theme songs from favourite TV shows or movies or active movement songs where you can follow the actions of the song are great