Making Rain With Our Bodies
Sitting in a circle, children create a storm with their bodies: it starts with fingertip raindrops, builds into a downpour with claps and thigh pats, and then calms down again. Children practice loud and soft sounds and paying attention to the group.
How to play
- In a circle on the floor, the teacher says we are going to make it rain without water and shows the first raindrop: one finger tapping the palm of the other hand (1 min).
- Add more drops: two fingers, three fingers, then the whole hand, a little louder each time, copying the teacher (1 min).
- Downpour! Pat thighs harder and harder and stomp feet on the floor; the teacher raises their arms to mean "louder" (1 min).
- Thunder: one big slap of both hands on the floor when the teacher opens their eyes wide, then back to rain (1 min).
- The storm moves away: do everything in reverse, feet, thighs, claps, fingers, until we are completely quiet (1 min).
- Stand up and shake the water off: hands, arms, legs, and one last jump (1 min).
Rules
- Copy what the teacher's hands do.
- When the teacher's hands go down, the rain gets soft.
- At the end, we make after-the-rain quiet.
Variations
Easier
For 3-year-olds, use only fingers, claps, and feet, and the teacher says each step out loud.
Standard
For 4-year-olds, do the full storm with thunder and the quiet ending.
Harder
For 5-year-olds, one child is the cloud and leads the storm by raising and lowering their hands.
Adaptations
- Limited mobility: children who can't stomp make rain with hands only, on their thighs or a table.
- Hearing impairment: exaggerate gestures and sit nearby so the child can feel the floor vibrate during the thunder.
- Autism or noise sensitivity: warn before the thunder and let the child keep making soft rain the whole time.
Learning goals
- Tell loud and soft sounds apart using the body.
- Follow a body percussion sequence by copying an adult.
- Warm up the body gradually.
Teacher tip
Teach the sequence with few words: little ones copy hands better than instructions. A common problem is a storm that never ends, so make the ending clear by lowering your hands very slowly.
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