The Bag of Dancing Objects
The teacher pulls an object out of a mystery bag, makes it move in front of everyone, and children dance like it: floppy like the rag doll, light like the scarf, stiff like the spoon or springy like the toy spring. It works on movement qualities and imagination.
How to play
- Sitting in a circle, the teacher shakes the bag to make it rattle; a child reaches in and pulls out the first object (1 min).
- The teacher moves the object: the scarf floats and falls, and everyone dances lightly like it around the space to soft music (2 min).
- Next objects: the rag doll (floppy, flopping down), the wooden spoon (straight and stiff, moving as one piece), the toy spring (stretching and squishing), the ball (bouncing and rolling) (5 min).
- Mix it up: the teacher shows two objects in a row and children switch from one dance to the other ("spoon to rag doll") (2 min).
- Secret object: a child takes out an object without showing it, dances like it, and the others guess what it is (3 min).
- Everyone becomes the rag doll and flops gently to the floor to finish (1 min).
Rules
- I dance the way the object moves, not just any way.
- Only the teacher or the child who picks from the bag touches the objects.
- I dance around without bumping.
- To guess, I raise my hand and wait.
Variations
Easier
For 3-year-olds, use only three very different objects (scarf, rag doll, ball), with the teacher dancing too.
Standard
For 4-year-olds, use all five objects and a few mixes.
Harder
For 5-year-olds, add the secret object and let them suggest other classroom objects to dance like (a big rubber band, a sheet of tissue paper, a newspaper page).
Adaptations
- Limited mobility: the child shows each object with arms and trunk and can be the one moving the real object for the group.
- Visual impairment: the child touches the object to feel what it's like (soft, hard, stretchy) before dancing.
- Autism: show all the objects at the start to remove the surprise if it causes anxiety.
Learning goals
- Tell apart movement qualities: light, heavy, stiff, floppy, springy.
- Imitate an object's movement with the body.
- Use imagination to create a dance.
Equipment for a class of 25
- Cloth bag: 1
- Toy spring: 1
- Scarf: 1
- Ball: 1
- Rag doll: 1
- Wooden spoon: 1
- Music
Teacher tip
Move each object slowly and big before they dance; what they really copy is your movement. Use objects too large to fit in a mouth.
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