The Jellyfish Floating in a Calm Sea

Children are jellyfish who open and close slowly as they breathe, float around the room with a scarf, and sink to the ocean floor to rest. It's a cool-down using breathing and slow movement.

How to play

1. In a soft voice, the teacher explains that a see-through jellyfish floats in the calm sea; each child puts a scarf on their head like a little hat (1 min).
2. The jellyfish open and close: breathing in, arms go up and open; breathing out, they come down and close (1 min).
3. With soft music, we float very slowly around the room; if the scarf falls, we pick it up calmly and put it back (2 min).
4. The jellyfish sinks to the ocean floor: it sits, then lies down and puts the scarf on its tummy to watch it rise and fall (1 min).
5. We stay still for a moment, and the teacher says each jellyfish's name so they get up very slowly (1 min).

Rules

• Jellyfish move very slowly.
• We talk softly or not at all.
• Each jellyfish floats in its own space without touching others.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: a jellyfish in a wheelchair opens and closes with the arms and rests the scarf on their lap.
• Autism: don't require lying down; the child can rest sitting up, hugging the scarf.
• Visual impairment: use a soft-textured scarf, and the teacher says aloud when to open and close.

Learning goals

• Link movement to breathing.
• Move slowly and with control.
• Calm down after activity.

Equipment for a class of 25

• Scarves: 25
• Music

Teacher tip

Dim the lights and lower your voice before starting. The usual mistake is blowing hard, so ask for a "jellyfish breath" you can barely hear.

More activities like this

More cool-downs for Elementary