Popcorn Popping in the Pan
Children are corn kernels crouched in a giant pan, and when the teacher claps they pop, jumping up and scurrying around like popcorn. It practices reacting to a sound from a squat and pushing off with the legs.
How to play
- Mark out the pan (the whole space), and everyone crouches down like tiny, hard corn kernels (1 min).
- The teacher "turns on the stove" by rubbing the drum: the kernels shake without standing up, getting hotter and hotter (1 min).
- Every clap is a POP: everyone jumps up with arms wide and crouches back down; the claps come when nobody expects them (2 min).
- When the drum rolls fast, all the popcorn jumps and scurries around the pan; when it stops, they freeze and the teacher "pours them into the bowl" in a circle (2 min).
- In the bowl, the popcorn sits in a circle and shakes the salt off arms and legs (1 min).
Rules
- I wait for the clap while crouched, without standing up.
- I jump up, not into my friends.
- When the drum stops, I freeze like popcorn in the bowl.
Variations
Easier
For 3-year-olds, the teacher claps where everyone can see and leaves time to crouch back down.
Standard
For 4-year-olds, mix fast and slow claps plus a "fake clap" that's very soft and doesn't count.
Harder
For 5-year-olds, one clap is one jump and two claps are two jumps in a row, so they must count and react.
Adaptations
- Limited mobility: a child who can't crouch starts sitting and pops by shooting the arms up.
- Visual impairment: the child plays next to a buddy who warns if someone is close; the claps are a natural signal.
- Less coordination: the child can jump from standing with bent knees instead of a full squat.
Learning goals
- React quickly to a clap from a squatting position.
- Push off with the legs in vertical jumps.
- Warm up the body in a fun, shared way.
Equipment for a class of 25
- Hand drum: 1
Teacher tip
Model the pop in slow motion first so they jump up, not forward. If squatting gets tiring, let them wait on their knees.
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