Let's get moving

AREA SETUP

Interactive planning-Let’s get moving

(Open interactive planning-Let’s get moving)Type your activities on the document and print it. Use the document to organize and present educational activities related to the theme. 

(Open thematic poster-Let's get moving) Print, laminate, and display all kinds of posters.

Educa-decorate-Let's get moving
(Open educa-decorate-Let's get moving) Print, cut out, and laminate. Use the items to decorate the walls of your daycare and set the mood for the theme.

Garland-Let's get moving
(Open garland-Let's get moving) Print and let children decorate the various items. Cut them out and use them to form a garland that may be hung within your daycare or near your daycare entrance.

My "get moving" corner

Set up a special corner within your daycare. It may, for example, include a miniature trampoline, a few hula hoops, a balance beam, and an exercise mat on which children can practice somersaults. Children will appreciate having the opportunity to use this corner as an outlet for their excess energy. You may be surprised to notice how this corner decreases the number of times children need to visit your "thinking corner" and the occurrence of inappropriate behavior.

CIRCLE TIME

The educatall team has prepared a special activity-filled week for little ones. You can present the activities one after the other or, if you prefer, simply pick and choose the ones you feel your group will enjoy most. Have fun discovering new ways to be active with children.

To introduce the theme, we suggest presenting a short series of aerobic exercises that you can perform together, as a group. (Open games-aerobics) Print and laminate the cards. They will inspire you to integrate a variety of different moves.

ACTIVITY SHEETS

(Open activity sheets-Let's get moving) Print and follow instructions.

WRITING ACTIVITIES

(Open writing activities-R like restless) Print for each child or laminate for use with a dry-erase marker.

Stationery-Let's get moving
(Open stationery-Let's get moving) Print. Use the stationery to communicate with parents, in your writing corner, or to identify your thematic bins.

Educa-nuudles-Let's get moving

(Open educa-nuudles-Let's get moving) Print for each child. Have children color the sheet. Once they are done, they may use Magic Nuudles to turn the coloring pages into three-dimensional works of art. Variation: If you do not have Magic Nuudles, ask children to fill the spaces designed for Magic Nuudles with bingo markers or stickers. To order Magic Nuudles.

LANGUAGE ACTIVITIES

Word flashcards

Use the cards to spark a conversation with your group or in your reading and writing area. They may also be used to identify your thematic bins. (Open word flashcards-Gymnastics) Print. Exercise mat, mirror, stretching, ribbon, gymnastics, gymnast, balance beam, parallel bars, horse, spring board, gymnasium, rings

The flashcards may be used during circle time to spark a conversation or in your reading and writing area. They may also be used to identify your thematic bins. (Open word flashcards-Let’s get moving) (Open giant word flashcards-Let’s get moving) active, run, jump, swim, stretch, sneakers, soccer, move around, hike, carry, walk, advance.

Educa-chatterbox-Let’s get moving

(Open educa-chatterbox-Let’s get moving) Print and laminate the cards. To create your chatterbox, you will need an empty shoebox or a small bin that you can decorate as you see fit. Fill it with tiny objects, illustrations, pictures, and accessories related to your theme. To help you, we have created a series of cards that you may use. During circle time or, for example, when children are waiting for their lunch, have them take turns picking a card or object out of your chatterbox and naming the corresponding item.

Sequential story-Yoga
(Open sequential stories-Yoga) Print and laminate the various cards. Children must place them in the correct order.

Perpetual calendar-Gymnastics Day
(Open perpetual calendar-Gymnastics Day) Print and use the calendar to display the day, date, and month of your Gymnastics Day. Invite parents to dress their child in loose, comfortable clothing for the occasion. Set large beach towels or exercise mats on the floor of your daycare and use them for a variety of activities. If you wish, you may even let children eat their lunch and snacks on their exercise mat for the day.

ROUTINES AND TRANSITIONS

Game-This is my spot-Let's get moving
(Open Game-This is my spot-Let's get moving) Print two copies. Laminate and cut out the cards. Glue one copy of each card on the table using adhesive paper. Drop the other copies in a bag. Children take turns picking a card to determine their spot at the table for the day. You may also use the cards to determine naptime spots or for your task train.

My body part path
(Open my body part path) Print, laminate, and arrange the illustrations on the floor to create a path that leads to areas children visit regularly throughout the day such as the bathroom, the cloakroom, etc. If you prefer, use the illustrations to delimit your various workshops.

ACTIVITIES INVOLVING PARENTS

Mommy/Daddy and me gym
Ask parents to plan to stay with their child for 10-15 minutes in the morning or at the end of the day so they have time to take part in a group exercise session.

I am moving with Mommy and Daddy
Invite parents to take turns leading a short exercise session in the morning or at the end of the day. Some parents may have talents you didn't know about. Older brothers and sisters may enjoy playing this role too. They have most likely been introduced to interesting exercises at school.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND MOTOR SKILLS

Animated discussion-Let’s get moving spinner

We suggest presenting a brief aerobic exercise session to encourage children to be active. (Open Let’s get moving spinner) Print and laminate the spinner and use it to present the various exercises that children are to perform.

Modeling dough activity placemats-Let’s get moving

(Open modeling dough activity placemats-Let’s get moving) Print and laminate. Let children pick a placemat and provide modeling dough. Encourage them to use the dough to fill or reproduce the shapes that are on their placemat.

Roll and color-Let’s get moving

(Open roll and color-Let’s get moving) Print for each child. This game can be enjoyed individually or as a group. Children take turns rolling a die, counting the dots, and coloring a section with the corresponding number printed in it.

Obstacle course

Create an obstacle course using cushions, hula hoops, and fabric tunnels to encourage children to crawl, jump, and move about in a variety of ways.

Dancing fun

Play music and have fun dancing together as a group. Children love moving to the sound of music!

Oversized coloring activity

Roll out a large piece of paper and encourage children to draw shapes and streets all over it. They will have fun jumping or walking on the shapes or along the paths they have created.

Musical statue game

Repeatedly start and stop music. Encourage children to dance whenever the music is playing and stand perfectly still every time the music stops.

My motor skills area

Set up a special motor skills area within your daycare. Your area could include a miniature trampoline, a few hula hoops, a balance beam, and an exercise mat that children can safely perform somersaults on. Children will appreciate being able to expend any excess energy they may have during the day. This area can greatly reduce the need for visits to your “time-out area” throughout the theme.  

Let’s get moving die

(Open let’s move die) Print, laminate, and cut out the illustrations. Press them on the sides of a box that you have wrapped with colorful paper. Children take turns rolling the die. They must execute the illustrated action as a group.

I move my body
Organize an exercise session to help children recognize different body parts. Following this initial exercise session, treat your group to a guided relaxation session. Name one body part at a time and encourage children to fully relax the corresponding muscles.

Jump around

Hang soft objects (for example stuffed animals) from your daycare ceiling using string. Encourage children to jump up to grab hold of them.

Educa-move-Crustaceans

(Open educa-move-Crustaceans) Print and laminate. Tell children they are lobsters (they walk around, opening and closing their hands to represent large lobster claws). Next, tell them they are crabs (they place their hands on their hips and shuffle sideways like a crab walking along the beach). Children then pretend they are crayfish (they stand and represent tiny claws with their thumbs and index fingers). Finally, encourage them to represent shrimp (they perform a series of tiny hops and waddle around the daycare).

Educa-move-The toolbox

(Open educa-move-The toolbox) Print and laminate. Tell children they are hammers (they move their arm up and down in a hammering motion). Next, they become screwdrivers (children stand tall, with their arms stretched up above their heads and spin around). Children can pretend to be saws (they swing their body back and forth repeatedly to represent a sawing movement). They can also mimic a level (they walk on a balance beam, placing one foot in front of the other and holding their arms out for balance). Finally, they can pretend to be pliers (they press their thumbs against their other fingers alternately).

Yoga session

Create a brief yoga session that you can use to prepare children for different activities. (Open picture game-Yoga) 

Strike a pose

(Open picture game-Yoga poses) Display the different yoga poses on your daycare walls. During circle time, invite a child to pick a pose that the entire group will be invited to execute and hold for a few minutes. Once they have succeeded, encourage another child to pick the next pose that they will perform.  

Yoga pose die

(Open yoga pose die) Print, cut out the illustrations and use them to create a die. Children take turns rolling the die to determine which yoga pose they are to execute. Variation: Use a die with numbers 1 to 6. Roll the yoga pose die and the numbered die. The latter will determine how many times children must inhale and exhale while holding the pose. 

My heart beats
(Open picture-heart) Print. Tell children that their heart is like their motor. Encourage them to jump up and down to the sound of fast-paced music. Next, invite them to find a partner so they can listen to each other’s heartbeat. Help them understand how, when they are very active, their heart beats faster and that is why they need periods of calm after high-energy play, to allow their heart to rest and recuperate.

I am strong

Ask children to transport as many objects as possible in their arms, from one designated area to another. 

Tennis
Divide your group into 2 teams. Set 2 baskets on the floor. The object of the game is for children to toss as many tennis balls as possible into their team’s basket. You must determine a duration prior to starting this game. 

Golf
Set several small baskets on their side on the floor. Children take turns rolling 5 golf balls towards the baskets. They earn 1 point for each ball that lands in a basket.

Hockey 
Provide hockey sticks and pucks. Play hockey with your group. You can play against another daycare group or invite another daycare to meet you at a local playground for a quick hockey game.   

Wheelbarrow race

Draw a start and finish line on the ground in your yard. Divide your group into teams of 2 children. One child from each team gets down on his arms and knees to represent a wheelbarrow. His hands must remain on the ground. The other child lifts his partner’s legs, holding them at knee-level. When you give the signal, children work together to advance towards the finish line. The first wheelbarrow that reaches the finish line wins.  

Gymnastics game
(Open body part die) Print and laminate. Create a giant body part die using a cardboard box or foam puzzle pieces that you have connected to create a cube. Glue a body part illustration on each face of your die. Children take turns rolling the die and stretching the corresponding body part or performing an exercise that highlights it. For example, if the die lands on the head picture, the child could perform head rotations.

Let’s get moving games

For this theme, we invite you to present several motor skill activities. This theme can last a week, a month, or simply be explored throughout the year to integrate activities that foster active play among the children in your group. (Open let’s get moving games) Print and laminate the posters in both formats. To begin, display a large poster to announce your daily flagship activity to parents (and children). If you wish, have children pick a smaller card to determine which activity you will enjoy as a group. Prepare a special “Let’s get moving” box or envelope. Whenever you pull it out, children will know what kind of activity they are about to participate in.

Rings

Hold one or two hula hoops upright and encourage children to walk through them in a single file. Once they have all successfully gone through the hoops once, raise the hula hoops somewhat. Continue to raise them until children are no longer able to walk through them. You can also alternate between raising and lowering the hula hoops, just for fun.  

COGNITIVE ACTIVITIES

Counting cards-Let’s get moving

(Open counting cards-Let’s get moving) Print and laminate. Prepare a series of clothespins on which you can paint or write numbers 1 to 9 using a marker. Children must count the items on each card and press the clothespin with the corresponding number on it, where indicated.

Educ-math-Let’s get moving
(Open educ-math-Let’s get moving) Print and laminate for durable, eco-friendly use. Children must count the items in each rectangle and circle the corresponding number.

Educ-same and different-Let’s get moving
(Open educ-same and different-Let’s get moving) Print and laminate for durable, eco-friendly use. Children must circle the illustration that is different in each row.

Educa-shapes-Let’s get moving

(Open educa-shapes-Let’s get moving) Print, laminate, and cut out the models as well as the small shapes. Children pick a model and find the shapes required to reproduce it. Younger children can simply set the shapes directly on the models.

Playing cards-Let’s get moving

(Open playing cards-Let’s get moving) Print and laminate. Give each child the same number of cards. They take turns hiding their cards in your daycare. When they are done, they race to find and collect as many cards as possible.

Playing cards-Let’s get moving

(Open playing cards-Let’s get moving) Print and laminate several playing cards and hide them throughout your daycare or yard. Divide your group into 2 teams. When you give the signal, children race to collect as many cards as possible for a predetermined period of time, for example 3 minutes.

Counting pompoms-Let’s get moving

(Open counting pompoms-Let’s get moving) Print for each child. Children must glue the correct number of pompoms on each card.

Coloring hunt and seek-Let’s get moving

(Open coloring hunt and seek-Let’s get moving) Print and laminate. Children must find and color the items in the scene. 

SPECIAL ACTIVITIES

For this theme, we encourage you to introduce your group to a wide range of physical activities. This theme can last one week or an entire month. You can even use it for inspiration throughout the year to keep children active. (Open Let's get moving games) Print and laminate the posters in both formats. Use the larger posters to present daily activities to parents and your group. The smaller posters can be used to have children pick an activity. Simply insert them in a special envelope. Whenever you take the envelope out, children will know what kind of activity is coming.

Rings
Hold a hula hoop in your hands, indoors or outdoors. Children stand single file and take turns walking or jumping through the hula hoop. Once everyone has had a turn, lift the hula hoop up higher for the next round. Alternate between holding the hula hoop up high and down low.

The hula hoop
Give each child a hula hoop and ask them to spin it around their waist, keeping it in motion for as long as possible.

The hula hoop circle
Invite children to stand in a circle and hold hands. Introduce a hula hoop between two children and close the circle. The goal of the game is for the hula hoop to travel all the way around the circle, but without children every letting go of their hands. They will have to find the solution.

The spinning top hula hoop
Spin a hula hoop in the centre of your playing area. Children take turns turning the hula hoop to keep it in motion.

Boat on the water
Divide your group into teams of two children. Invite the children from each team to sit face to face inside a hula hoop and swing back and forth as if they were in a boat. You can encourage them to sing Row, row, row your boat at the same time.

Hula hoop targets
Use hula hoops as targets to give children the opportunity to practice their throwing skills with balls and bean bags. You can easily hang the hula hoops on a wall or fence or simply deposit them on the floor, a few feet away.

The balance beam
Stretch a long rope out on the floor to represent a balance beam. Invite children to imagine that the rope is suspended, high above the floor. Encourage them to walk on the rope, barefoot. They mustn't place their feet beside the rope. If they do, they have fallen off! You can have children walk backwards on the rope, jump up and down on it, crawl on it, etc. Variation: Use colourful electrical tape to draw a long rectangle on the floor to represent a balance beam. Ask children to perform a variety of moves on your balance beam. Provide examples.

Tight-rope walker
Like a tight-rope walker in a circus, have children walk on a line drawn on the floor while holding an umbrella or a stick in their hands.

Horse
Place a small bench, a recycling bin, or any other object you may have upside down on the floor to represent a horse (gymnastics). Show children how they can jump over it, placing their hands on the horse.

Somersaults
Set exercise mats in a row on the floor and invite children to perform somersaults on them. Once they have mastered forward somersaults, help them execute backwards somersaults.

Handstands
Help children execute handstands. One at a time, invite them to place their hands on the floor and gently raise their legs, holding their ankles.

Jumping
Set a variety of objects on the floor. They mustn't be too high. Children must jump over the objects, with their feet together. If you prefer, you may simply have them jump inside hula hoops.

Trampoline

Have fun jumping on a small trampoline. Use a timer to make sure everyone has a turn. Variation: Instead of using a timer, ask children to count to 10, 20, or 30, depending on their age. You can find many other physical activities and activities for the development of gross motor skills in the following themes:

• Music
• Winter Olympics
• Yoga

ARTS & CRAFTS

Ball painting

Pour a small amount of paint on pieces of paper and encourage children to roll balls through the paint to actively create designs.

Mandalas-Let’s get moving

(Open mandalas-Let’s get moving) Print for each child. Children color their mandala using bold colors.

My hat-Let’s get moving

(Open educa-decorate-Let’s get moving) Print and cut out the items. Encourage children to glue them on a paper headband to create a hat representing the theme.

Finger puppets-Let’s get moving

(Open finger puppets-Let’s get moving) Print the various models on heavy paper. Have children cut them out and decorate them. They can insert their fingers in the holes to bring the puppets to life.

COLORING PAGES

Coloring pages theme-Let's get moving
(Open coloring pages theme-Let's get moving) Print for each child.

Complete the drawing-Let's get moving
(Open complete the drawing-Let's get moving) Print for each child. Children must draw the missing details.

I am learning to draw-A character
(Open I am learning to draw-A character) Print and laminate the model sheet. Invite children to practice their drawing technique on the model sheet before attempting to draw a character on their own.

SONGS & RHYMES

(Open songs & rhymes-Let's get moving)

Let's get moving

Sung to: London Bridge is falling down By: Patricia Morrison

We can run around the yard
Around the yard, around the yard
We can run around the yard
Let's get moving

We can skip rope all afternoon
All afternoon, all afternoon
We can skip rope all afternoon
Let's get moving

We can throw and catch our favorite ball
Favorite ball, favorite ball
We can throw and catch our favorite ball
Let's get moving

Have fun

The Educatall team