The Dragon with the Hiccups
Children dance a made-up story about a dragon who gets the hiccups: with every drum "hic!" it jumps and a spark pops out, and the whole kingdom dances to cure it. It works on dancing a story, reacting to signals and expressing feelings.
How to play
- Sitting down, the teacher tells the beginning: a huge dragon wakes up with the hiccups; every time the drum sounds, "Hic!", it jumps (2 min).
- Everyone is a dragon: they dance big and heavy around the space to the music, and on each drumbeat they jump with a surprised face (3 min).
- The kingdom's cures: first they dance like the king (slow and elegant) to scare the hiccups away, then like jesters (fast and silly) to make the dragon laugh (3 min).
- Holding your breath: the teacher asks for a very slow dance without breathing hard, but the hiccups come back and everyone jumps (2 min).
- The final cure: all the dragons dance a tickle dance all over their bodies and the hiccups go away; they dance happily with relief (3 min).
- The tired dragon curls up and falls asleep, breathing slowly (2 min).
Rules
- With every drum "Hic!", I jump.
- I dance like the character in the story.
- Big dragons don't push.
- At the end, I curl up and sleep.
Variations
Easier
For 3-year-olds, use only the hiccupping dragon and the sleepy ending, with the teacher playing the dragon.
Standard
For 4-year-olds, add the king and the jesters.
Harder
For 5-year-olds, the group invents another hiccup cure and dances it.
Adaptations
- Limited mobility: the jump is a quick lift of shoulders and arms from the chair.
- Hearing impairment: mark the "hic" by raising the drum high where everyone can see it.
- Autism: show the story in three pictures before starting and play the drum more softly.
Learning goals
- Dance the characters in a story.
- React to a sound cue with a movement.
- Express surprise, joy and calm with the body.
Equipment for a class of 25
- Hand drum: 1
- Music
Teacher tip
Play up the "hic" with lots of humor; little ones find it hilarious. If the jumps get too wild, space out the drumbeats more.
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