My Shadow Follows Me Everywhere

In pairs, one child walks around the playground doing different moves and the other is their shadow, following behind and copying everything. It builds observation, imitation and matching someone else's pace.

How to play

1. The teacher and a child demonstrate: the teacher walks, crouches, jumps and turns, and the child-shadow copies it all, staying close behind (2 min).
2. In pairs: the leader walks around the playground, changing how they move (tiptoe, jumping, slow-motion), and the shadow copies (3 min).
3. If it's sunny, we look at our real shadows on the ground and make them dance, grow and shrink; if not, we switch partners (2 min).
4. Switch roles: now the shadow is the leader (2 min).
5. The shadow goes to sleep: the leader sits down very slowly and the shadow sits the same way, right behind them (1 min).

Rules

• The shadow stays behind and does what the leader does.
• The leader moves slowly so the shadow can keep up.
• The shadow doesn't touch the leader, just copies.
• Then we switch: everyone is a leader and a shadow.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: the leader uses arm, head and trunk movements the child can copy, moving at their own pace.
• Visual impairment: the shadow keeps a gentle hand on the leader's shoulder to feel changes (crouching, turning).
• Autism: start as the teacher's shadow, which is predictable, before playing with a classmate.

Learning goals

• Watch and copy another person's movements.
• Match their own pace to a partner's.
• Come up with varied movements for someone else to copy.

Teacher tip

If you can, play on a sunny mid-morning: finding their real shadow is a big hit. Leaders tend to run off and lose their shadow; keep repeating “Your shadow can't come unstuck from you!”

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