Justin Fletcher has the second dance session based on Nick Butterworth's popular Percy the Park Keeper story.
2. Rabbit down the well!
After adding new characters - rabbits skipping, hopping and jumping and new birds flapping and wing-fluttering - this part of the story emphasises co-operative movements. In a circle echo-game, the children mime calling out to the lost rabbit. Then the climax is a rope-chain - like a tug-of-war - where everyone heaves together on an imaginary rope to pull out鈥ot a rabbit but an old log. Luckily the rabbit has escaped safely, so all鈥檚 well that ends well!
Resources
Download the audio for this dance session as an mp3 file.
Guidance on using the dance sessions in this unit with your group (pdf)
Lesson summary:
Warm up: park-keeping actions.
Mammals about: moving like Hedgehog, Mole, Badger, Fox and Mice.
Birds on the wing: moving like Owl, Duck, Blackbird, Sparrow and Pigeon.
Rabbit family arrives: a circle rabbit-dance, with some short jumps, skips, hops and high jumps.
Down the well: hopping, skipping and slow-motion falling.
All fall down: everyone repeats the young rabbit鈥檚 falling movements .
Oh dear, oh dear! Moving around the space, making worrying, sighing and wondering-what-to-do gestures.
The Big Idea: fetching a rope and peering down the well-hole.
Echo game: 鈥榮hivering鈥 and 鈥榗alling out鈥.
All pull together: forming a line, to tug, pull and heave.
Cool down: tiptoeing to safety and curling up on the ground for a rest.
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