My Shadow Gets Tiny

Standing in the sun, children breathe while watching their shadow: breathing in, they make it big, and breathing out, they make it smaller and smaller until they end up sitting calmly in the shade. It works on breathing and cooling down.

How to play

1. With your back to the sun, look at your shadow; breathe in through your nose and raise your arms: big shadow! (1 min).
2. Breathe out slowly through your mouth and lower your arms: the shadow gets thinner (1 min).
3. With each breath, go a little lower: bend your knees, then kneel on the ground (1 min).
4. Curl up into a ball and peek: your shadow is tiny like a pebble (1 min).
5. Stand up very slowly, walk to the shade of the tree or porch and sit down quietly (1 min).

Rules

• Breathe slowly, no rush.
• Everyone watches only their own shadow.
• Talk softly or not at all.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: in the wheelchair, the shadow grows with arms up and shrinks by crossing arms over the chest.
• Autism: always do it at the end of outdoor sessions, with the same starting phrase.
• Visual impairment: they follow the warmth of the sun on their back, and the teacher’s hand on their shoulder sets the pace.

Learning goals

• Bring heart rates down after play.
• Match breathing with movement.
• Connect body size with shadow size.

Teacher tip

Pick a spot with gentle sun and a shady area right next to it to finish: don’t leave children lying in the sun on hot days. Speak softly from the very first step; they’ll copy your tone.

More activities like this

More cool-downs for Elementary