Alternate Activity 1: Freeze Dance
Part of Creating Home
Activity time: 10 minutes
Materials for Activity
- Drums the children made in Activity 4: Making a Log Drum, or music to play and pause on a CD or tape player
Preparation for Activity
- Make sure you have enough room for children to spread out and "freeze dance" safely.
- Decide in advance how you will allow children to be the music makers. Can they use the CD player? How many children do you want to play their drums at one time? How will you decide whose turn it is?
Description of Activity
A group game helps children build community. This game is similar to musical chairs. Say, in your own words:
The guests at Hare's party not only got to make music, they also danced. Dancing is another activity that sometimes we do alone, but sometimes people like to do it together: at celebrations, like weddings or in staged performances.
Ask children for examples of when they have danced in a group with other people. If dancing together occurs in your congregation, give specific examples.
Now say:
Here is a game called Freeze Dance where we can dance together. Everyone find a space on the floor to stand where you have enough room to dance without bumping into other children.
Once all children have found a spot to stand, tell them that when the music plays, they should dance. When the music stops, everyone freezes.
Say, in your own words:
The music may end when you are in an awkward position. If any part of your body moves after the music stops, you become a music maker. The music makers will take turns playing the music for freeze dance and deciding when to start and stop.
You can make music in a couple of different ways. You could play recorded music on a CD or tape player and hit "Pause" or "Stop" when it's time for dancers to freeze. Or, you could play a beat on a drum constructed in Activity 4: Making a Log Drum. If you plan to use the drums you made, don't use paint to decorate as the paint will not be dry in time.