Balloons are not only fun to see but also fun to be. Begin the New Year by teaching the children in your care that movement/dance can be beneficial and fun. Celebration balloons and their interesting, playful movements will “Dazzle” their way into today’s cooperative creative movement activity.
- Clear a safe, open space to move and dance. Have the children find their own perfect spot and move as if they are new balloons right out of the bag. They are deflated and flat. They can stretch and snap. Now have them slowly inflate and grow and expand to become gigantic balloons. Have the “balloons” choose their color and their shape, (short, long, round, heart shaped, oval, triangle, etc.), and their size (tiny, medium, or huge).
- Have them float throughout the space in a zig jag, straight, or curved air pathway without touching another balloon. This takes cooperation and helps teach spatial awareness. Music is a nice addition to this activity.
- Have the balloons float and start to move closer and closer together. Then due to static electricity, they “stick together like good friends” and form a cluster of balloons which moves/dances about the space connected. The leader can pretend to hold to the cluster of balloons by imaginary strings and be “danced” around the room.
4. Pretend the “balloons” start to loose their air and begin to deflate. This causes
them to separate and before they know it they find themselves bouncing and
hovering near the ground. Eventually they are completely deflated and lie flat and
still.
Repeat the “Everyday Jig” from this week’s “SPARK” activity.