The Stomping Feet Party

To drumming music and the teacher's drum, children dance powerfully close to the ground: stomping, bent knees, jumps and claps, inventing their own moves. It works on rhythm, energy and moving with the whole body.

How to play

1. In a circle, the teacher plays the drum and everyone answers with their feet: stomping loud, soft, fast and slow to match the sound (2 min).
2. A drumming recording plays: children dance freely around the playground with stomps and bent knees, as if waking up the earth (3 min).
3. When the teacher hits one very loud beat on the drum, everyone jumps with arms up and keeps dancing (2 min).
4. Solo circle: in a circle, one child steps into the middle and dances any way they like while everyone keeps the beat patting their knees; then another goes in (3 min).
5. The drums fade away: the dance gets softer and softer until they're tiptoeing, then they stop (2 min).

Rules

• I stomp on the ground, never on friends.
• When I hear the loud beat, I jump.
• I only go into the middle if I want to.
• When the drum goes quiet, I freeze.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: the child keeps the beat with hands on legs or on the chair and can roll into the middle if they want.
• Hearing impairment: dancing barefoot or on a wooden floor helps feel the vibration; also signal the loud beat with your arm.
• Autism: offer headphones or a spot a little farther from the drum; the solo circle is always optional.

Learning goals

• Follow a rhythm with the feet.
• Dance energetically using the whole body.
• Enjoy drumming music from different cultures.

Equipment for a class of 25

• Drum: 1
• Drumming music

Teacher tip

Look for percussion recordings from different parts of the world and tell children where they come from. Solos are optional: no one is made to go in, and anyone who doesn't want to keeps clapping.

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