Smart Songs and Active Play University of Wisconsin, Whitewater

Early Childhood Conference 2017

Workshop #1210, April 8, 8:30 am

Vincent Nunes and Dr. Diane Craft

Introduction

Childhood obesity is a significant concern in the U.S. Some have called it an epidemic.

Experts believe that many of today’s preschoolers will have to deal with obesity’s long-term

effects, including

an increase in type two diabetes,

high blood pressure,

bone and joint problems,

difficulty sleeping, and

the development of heart disease.

Early childhood professionals can contribute to the solution by helping children learn what is

healthy eating and by encouraging early learners to engage in active play. In this workshop we

will review what makes active play and how to inspire children to be active.

Activity and Music

Many of the physical activities of early learners are gentle or just moderate, such as

sitting, lying down, standing, squatting or walking a short distance. When early childhood

professionals inspire children to participate in more vigorous activities, their bodies and their

minds benefit. Vigorous activities include

running,

jumping,

climbing.

Any activity which increases heart rate, and makes you breathe hard and sweat (sometimes!)

helps

increase cardiovascular endurance,

strengthens muscles, and

makes organs, muscles and joints work more efficiently.

Music is an important tool for inspiring children to improve physical activity. When

music accompanies any activity for children, they become engaged and stimulated. Melody has

emotional qualities. Rhythm grips a child’s imagination and invites him or her to move. The

challenge for early childhood professionals is to choose songs which are interactive and address

age-appropriate developmental and educational goals, while still being “catchy” and fun.

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Smart Songs

What is a Smart Song? A song which inspires children to boost their activity level is fun

and memorable, but to take it to the next level and make it a Smart Song, there are three

factors, the Three Cs: Curriculum, Creativity and Community.

Curriculum: a Smart Song contains specific early childhood curriculum elements,

using age-appropriate vocabulary to enhance curriculum topics.

Creativity: a Smart Song encourages children to engage in higher level thinking,

including using their imagination and creativity to think critically and to solve problems.

Community: a Smart Song invites children to consider themselves participants in a

larger community, where values, such as respect, responsibility and cooperation.

Song Genres and Musical Origins

Early childhood professionals look for two other elements in music they consider Smart

Songs. The first is the many kinds of song genres, including zipper songs, echo songs, mantra

songs, sequence songs, building-block songs. The second is songs from a variety of musical

origins, such as Gospel, Rock, Jazz, Rap or Hip Hop, Blues, Caribbean, Latin, Folk, African and

Classical.

Zipper Songs, elements are “zipped” into the music, with a new, and creative or

curriculum-based item added as a specific part of the song comes around.

Echo Songs are call-and-response songs, encouraging children to participate in the

music.

Mantra Songs repeat the important content of the music over and over, helping

children to strengthen their memory skills.

Sequence Songs order the song elements to reinforce logical thinking.

Building-Block Songs add song elements, one after another, to create memory

challenges for children.

Songs from a variety of musical origins conveys the notion of diversity to children,

familiarizing them with the diversity of cultures around the world and even in their own

neighborhoods and families.

Examples of Smart Songs

“Shake, Shake” is a zipper song which introduces body parts, spatial locations and

relationships, following directions, and movement, provides the opportunity for dance play and

creative song writing. (The Best of Vincent Vol 1).

“Fire Station” is a zipper/accumulation and sequencing song about a day in the life of

fire fighters, the perfect tune to enhance fire safety lessons (The Best of Vincent Vol 2).

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“Uncle Jonathan” is a combination zipper/accumulation song which celebrates recycling

and reuse (The Best of Vincent Vol 1).

“Why Do I Move My Feet” is a Latin rhythm song, which encourages community dancing

and emphasizes physical engagement and spatial awareness (Move, Move, Move).

“Walking a Tightrope” is a song that helps children to understand balance and

encourages them to develop stability skills (Move, Move, Move).

“Rock Star” is a Rock music anthem, which encourages children to balance while

engaging in multiple movements, including crossing the midline of the body (Move, Move,

Move).

“There’s Always Something in My Way” is a song which describes multiple physical

activities and encourages children to be aware of, and move through the space around them

Move, Move, Move).

“I Wanna Bounce” is a song with funk stylings, which encourages vigorous activity and

invites children to dance together (Move, Move, Move)

“Fly Like My Dog” is in the folk genre, encouraging multiple movements, such as

running, jumping walking, and sitting (Move, Move, Move)

“Dance the Day Away” is an accumulation and zipper song, which urges children to

dance together while learning about body parts (Smart Songs for Active Children).

“I’ve Got a Pumpkin” is a Halloween-time zipper song that uses chanting and call and

response to help children learn the parts of a face (The Best of Vincent Vol 1).

“The Apes, the Monkeys and the Chimpanzees” is a zipper song, in which the names of

jungle animals contain one to five sounds or syllables to help children recognize different word

patterns (Smart Songs for Active Children)

www.VincentNunes.com

ALLIGATOR PITCrossing an alligator pit on a narrow balance beam is a thrilling challenge for children! The alligator pit is really your floor, the balance beam is a flat foam pool noodle, and the alligator is you!

GOALS FOR CHILDREN • Practice stability

EQUIPMENT

• A ‘balance beam’ made from two pieces of flat foam pool noodle sections, joined at ends and taped to the floor. Masking tape lines on the carpet will also work.

• Basket• Many safe objects to carry, such as socks,

beanbags, foam puzzle pieces, and pieces of foam cut from pool noodles.

• Duct tape

Reprinted with permission from Craft, D.H. & Smith, C.L. (2008). Active Play! Fun Physical Activities for Young Children.Available from diane.craft@cortland.edu

Suggested by Dana DeCarlo

Harder: Give the children more things to carry and harder ways of moving to make this activity more challenging. Tape a curved line on the floor as the balance beam to increase difficulty.

Variety: Pretend that floor spots are ‘lily pads.’ Arrange spots on the floor and let the chil-dren pretend they are frogs that must step, jump or hop from lily pad to lily pad across the alligator pit.

INSTRUCTIONS

Tape the balance beam to the floor. Place the basket at the far end of the balance beam. Have plenty of small toys and other safe objects for the children to carry at the near end of the beam. Tell the children where alligators live and what they eat. The children’s job is to walk the beam, and put things into the basket at the other end of the beam. Explain that the alligator who lives in the pit will not bother the children as long as they stay on the beam and don’t drop anything that they are carrying. If they drop something, or step off the beam, the alligator will chase them until they drop everything they are carrying in the basket. Give each child one item to carry across the beam and drop in the basket. After each child has gone once, increase what each must carry. Vary the skills. Ask children to carry beanbags balanced on their heads and shoulders. Have them jump across with foam blocks between their knees. Let them walk backwards across the beam with arms full of socks. When children drop objects into the pit, or step off the beam, chase them and move your extended arms up and down like an alligator’s jaws. School-aged children might enjoy play-ing the part of the alligator during this activity.

EQUIPMENT

• Bubble wrap, at least a 10 ft. length, 24 inches wide

Equipment Tip: 1/2 in. bubbles pop best. Ask adults to save wrap for this activity. Some businesses will donate wrap, if asked.

• Clear packaging tape

Tape some bubble wrap to the floor and every child will want to jump until all the bubbles are popped!

GOALS FOR CHILDREN • Practice jumping • Develop cardiovascular endurance

INSTRUCTIONS

Tape the wrap to the floor so it won’t slip. Don’t let children mouth or bite the bubble wrap. Instruct the children to move in only one direction when jumping the length of the wrap. No return trips with more than one child jumping at the same time! Or tape a square piece of wrap to the floor for each child if you want them to jump in place. Show children how to bend their knees and lift with their arms when they jump.Turn on lively music with a strong 4/4 beat to encourage children to jump to the song!

Cues for Learning to Jump for Distance

Just Learning: “Bend your knees.” “Land on both feet at the same time.” “Start with your arms behind you.” “Swing your arms forward as you jump.”

More Experienced: “Reach up and out (at a 45º angle) as you jump.” “Fall forward when you land.” Refer to On/Off to learn more jumping cues.

Easier: Hold smaller children’s hands for extra balance. Allow children with developmen-tal delays to walk if they are not yet ready to jump.

Harder: Tape 2 ft. squares some distance apart and have school-aged children jump from square-to-square.

Variety: Have the children walk a ‘balance beam’ made from a 6 in. wide, 10 ft. long strip of bubble wrap taped to the floor.

Reprinted with permission from Craft, D.H & Smith, C.L (2008) Active Play! Fun Physical Activities for Young Children.Available from diane.craft@cortland.edu

BUBBLE WRAP JUMPINGInspired by Renée McCall

View OnDVD

SWAT THE FLY

When you want preschoolers to run excitedly, try Swat the Fly. It takes just moments to learn the rules and boundaries. Then children charge around the play area, laughing and shouting, as they enjoy this activity! While some chil-dren drag ‘flies,’ made from plastic Frisbees and nylon cord, others chase them, trying to ‘swat’ the ‘flies’ with foam pool noodles.

GOALS FOR CHILDREN • Develop cardiovascular endurance • Practice striking

NOTE:

• Have drinking water on hand and watch children closely during this activity, especially during hot and humid weather!

EQUIPMENT

• Foam pool noodles, cut in half to make two swatters

• Frisbees or vinyl plastic plates

• Nylon cord for pulling each Frisbee

Equipment Tip: Drill a hole through a Frisbee or plate rim. Insert a four foot length of cord, and knot it under the rim. Make two copies of the ‘fly,’ for each Frisbee. Tape the image of the fly to each side of the Frisbee with clear packaging tape.

Reprinted with permission from Craft, D.H. & Smith, C.L. (2008, 2010). Active Play! Fun Physical Activities for Young Children.

Available from drcraft@activeplaybooks.com

Easier: Help younger children with their movement and swatting if needed. Children who are slow runners are likely to chase flies that are dragged more slowly. Children who are fast runners are likely to chase the fast flies.

Children who use wheelchairs or mobile prone standers can swat the flies that oth-ers drag past them.

Variety: For an indoor variation, make ‘flies’ from balloons inside netting or pantyhose. Suspend the ‘flies’ from an overhead structure, leaving space for swatters to swing safely. All children become swatters to practice striking.

INSTRUCTIONS

Explain to the children that some of them will drag flies, while others chase the flies, try-ing to swat them with foam bats. Demonstrate dragging, swatting and moving safely within the playing area. Have all children move in the same direction to avoid collisions. Explain that children may change from dragging to swatting whenever they wish. Give some children ‘flies’ to drag, and the rest foam pool noodle ‘swatters,’ then start the activity. If anyone objects to swatting flies, put pictures of drums on the disks instead, and have children chase the drums with their foam Pool Noodle drumsticks.

©2008, 2010 Diane Craft and Craig Smith