Today I was teaching dance to toddlers 18 months -24 months in a preschool and I was thinking I needed a new way to transition from one part of class to the other. A rocket ship came into my head for some reason and it worked so well! In between each section of class, I would say:
Explain first what you will do after you land in the rocket ship then take the trip! You can take them to a wall or line to do this but you don’t have to!
Sing or say “lets take a trip in my rocket ship” – Put hands together and crouch down low, count backwards from 5-4-3-2-1 blastoff!!
and there you are, in the next part of class! 🙂
Have you ever used a rocket ship for transitions? What do you use? I would love to hear!
Comments
Hi Maria,
Will be trying this idea after rocket take-off with “fly high, fly low, circle round, go to the ground” “fly in, fly out and circle about”.
I’ll be dancing with a friend’s 2 year old and trying out some creative movement ideas.
Any tips on working with “terrible 2’s” besides making movements their choice?
Cheers,
Anna
Hi Anna,
I think that where I would start first is to look at two year olds with what they bring to class instead of them being “terrible.” They really are awesome humans! Many of the ideas on the blog can be used or modified for twos. Let me know if you are looking for anything specific and I am happy to help.
Maria
I have my students blow up their bodies like a balloon useing big breaths. You can have them pick the color they would like to be first. Then the balloons float higher and higher they can even float to outer space. The balloons with round arms over head float to their new place then they pop…with a clap of the hands. Sometimes we will spin or balance on one leg as if to be caught in a tree.
With this excersise we incorporate breathing, riseing from the floor without touching the floor, ballet walks with a light airyness, balance, falling and somtimes we spin till we are a little dizzy….or a lot, before we fall. Note: it is important to remind them all the ballons must fall at the same time. 2yr to 7rys love this and demand it often.