The Log Drum

The teacher drums on a thick or hollow log with a stick, and children move to match the rhythm: slow, heavy bear beats, quick, soft mouse beats, or a horse gallop drumroll. It builds moving to a beat and listening skills.

How to play

1. Sit around the log and listen to how it sounds when hit with a stick: loud, soft, slow, fast (2 min).
2. Slow, loud beats: walk like heavy bears; quick, soft beats: tiptoe-run like mice (3 min).
3. Drumroll with two sticks: gallop like horses; silence: hide behind a pretend tree (3 min).
4. Take turns: one child drums on the log while the others move to the beat (4 min).
5. Set out several logs and each drummer plays for a while as the others dance (2 min).
6. Finish with slower and softer beats until everyone ends up sitting down (1 min).

Rules

• The stick only hits the log.
• I move the way the log sounds.
• When the log is quiet, I hide and freeze.
• I wait my turn to drum.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: be a lead drummer, or move in the wheelchair adjusting speed to the beat.
• Hearing loss: rest hands on the log to feel the vibration, and the teacher adds a gesture for each rhythm.
• Autism: warn before the drumroll, which can be intense, and let the child cover their ears if needed.

Learning goals

• Match movement to the beat and volume of a sound.
• Tell loud from soft and slow from fast.
• Create and share your own beat.

Equipment for a class of 25

• log: 2
• short sticks: 4

Teacher tip

A thick log propped on two others sounds much better than one on the ground. Use short, thick, blunt sticks, and keep the drummer inside a hoop or chalk circle, away from the dancers.

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