Horses Sleep Standing, Hens on One Leg

In a movement story, night falls on the farm and each animal sleeps its own way: the horse standing, the hen on one leg, the cow on its knees, the dog on watch on three legs, and the rooster on tiptoes at sunrise. It works on static balance poses with different supports through pretend play.

How to play

1. The teacher tells how night falls on the farm; the horse sleeps standing up, still, with its head drooping a little (3 min).
2. The hen climbs onto her perch and sleeps on one leg with her wings tucked in (3 min).
3. The cow lies on her knees in the straw, back tall and still while she chews (2 min).
4. The dog guards the farm on all fours, and when it hears a noise it lifts one paw and freezes to listen (2 min).
5. Dawn comes and the rooster rises onto tiptoes, stretches its neck, and crows "cock-a-doodle-doo!" (2 min).
6. Review: the teacher taps the drum and names an animal; everyone does its sleeping pose and holds it (2 min).

Rules

• Sleeping animals don't move.
• I make the animal sound quietly so I don't wake anyone.
• If I fall, I go back to sleep in my pose.
• Every animal has its own spot on the farm.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: each animal is acted out from the chair with arms, head, and trunk (hen with a tucked arm, rooster stretching its neck).
• Hearing impairment: each animal has a picture card the teacher holds up when naming it.
• Autistic children: they have the animal sequence on a picture strip and can remove each one when it's done.

Learning goals

• Hold still poses with varied supports (feet, knees, hands).
• Act out animals with the body.
• Follow a story and respond with poses.

Equipment for a class of 25

• hand drum: 1

Teacher tip

Tell the story calmly and let each pose last as long as a short piece of the story. Ask them first how they think each animal sleeps: they love finding out that horses sleep standing up.

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