Movement to Music
…and Dance
Children will be able to develop many skills through the enjoyment of music.
Activities alongside music will make them more engaging and enjoyable and are also inclusive. Children with varying abilities can act out a story or move to music together, but at their own level.
Objectives of Movement to Music
- Children explore a range of body movements and body shapes.
- Learn about their bodies and the space around them, moving safely.
- Start to understand levels and directions in space.
- Work in pairs, copy and mimic a partner’s movements.
- Developing spatial awareness, balance, coordination and poise.
- Developing body management skills through moving at different speeds, in different directions and stopping.
- Create and perform, working in pairs and groups.
- Learn about rhythm.
- Help children to explore and understand different emotions.
Setting up the Space
- Use spots to help children find a space.
- When moving around the space, only move in a circle if the activity required you to do so.
- Children can be encouraged to move between the spots to help them develop spatial awareness.
- Explain that the spots are hot as lava and they therefore cannot stand on them.
Considerations
Movement to Music should be an enjoyable, inclusive way for children to move, develop and grow. Please consider:
- Start small and simple, slowly building on the activities. The younger the children, the simpler the activity should be. Once all children have grasped the concept of the activity, you can then add additional elements to it.
- All children can move in some way or other, hence all activities can be adjusted to allow for the children you work with.
- Some children struggle in large groups, especially energetic groups that Movement to Music will encourage. Try to split the children into smaller groups and rotate between different activities.
Animal Wonders 1
If you have the Mini Moves Cards, use them as flashcards during this active song.
Dancing Stories
Using current topics create simple movements to the music that can become a very simple story to music.
One of our favourite pieces of music for this is:
Vivaldi Four Seasons – Violin Concerto in F Minor (Concerto No.4)
Examples
Dragons and fairies
Move to different parts of the music like a dragon, a fairy, trees, sky, etc.
Fairy flying through the forest and sees a dragon breathing fire. She watches from behind a tree. The dragon sees her and she flies into the sky. The dragon follows here as he is curious to find out what she is. They fly high into the sky and start to play flying in circles, up and down, etc.
Under the sea
Ask children to think of what they may find in the sea.
We’re all little fish swimming in the sea. We come to some sea weed which is swishing about in different ways with the movement of the water. We then come to a shark who is swimming very menacingly, we swim away very quickly and find a starfish moving slowly on the sea bed, etc.
Dance Basics
Create your own dances using the 5 Dance Basics.
Allocate a move to each dance basic and put the moves together.
Jump
Such as:
- On the spot
- forward and backward
- side to side
- diagonal
Gesture
Such as:
- Point to the sky
- Point to the floor
- Point across up and down
- Pretend swimming
- Thumbs out
Still
Such as:
- Standing
- Crouching
- Bending
- Sitting
- Lying
- Striking a pose
Turn
Such as:
- In big circles
- In small circles
- Spinning, one way, both ways
- Half turn
Travel
Such as:
- Moving from place to place Fast, slow
- Backwards
- Forwards
- Move whilst going up and down
- Box step
Audio Tracks
These tracks can be used when you plan your own dances and movement to music activities.
Other Suggested Music:
- Modern and old appropriate pop music
- Action songs
- Classical Music (e.g. Vivaldi’s Four Seasons)
- Music from different cultures
- Children’s favourite songs