Frog Monday, Cat Tuesday: The Hopping Week

Each day of the week has its own animal and way of moving, and with a made-up chant the group travels through the week until reaching today. It works on varied locomotor skills and a sense of time within the class routine.

How to play

1. In a circle, show five cards: Monday frog, Tuesday cat, Wednesday horse, Thursday duck, Friday kangaroo (1 min).
2. Chant: “Monday, Monday, who hops today? The frog hops, hip hooray!” and move around like frogs (1 min).
3. Continue with Tuesday, Wednesday and the rest, switching animals with each verse (2 min).
4. Ask: “And what day is today?” Repeat only today's animal, bigger and with more energy (1 min).
5. Return to the circle moving like tomorrow's animal, very slowly, to finish (1 min).

Rules

• Move like the animal when we say its day.
• When the verse ends, freeze like a photo.
• Stay in your own space without bumping other animals.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: each animal has an arm gesture (the frog claps, the cat stretches its paws).
• Hearing impairment: hold up the day's card for the whole verse.
• Autism: keep the cards in order on the wall and mark today with a clothespin.

Learning goals

• Perform varied locomotor movements imitating animals.
• Link the days of the week to a set sequence.
• Warm up the body gradually.

Equipment for a class of 25

• Animal picture cards: 5

Teacher tip

Keep the same animals all year so the chant becomes your opening routine. A common slip is speeding up; chant slowly and they'll follow.

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