Hawaiʻi State Department of Education
Cloud Sculpting
Dance is a fantastic way to communicate thoughts, feelings, and even science concepts. Make this activity a part of your next unit on weather and clouds. Kids will discuss types of clouds, how they look, and what they do. Then, they will...
Curated OER
Flip and Flop: An Adaptation Through Dancing Echoes with Shapes and Locomotor Movement
Dancers practice echoing through dance. They listen to a story "Flip and Flop" and then are put into pairs. One partner is Flip, while the other is Flop. Flip creates a shape by dancing, and Flop, the other student, echoes that shape by...
Curated OER
Three Little Pigs Body Puppets
Here is a six-page activity packet that contains very nice black-line masters of the characters in The Three Little Pigs. These are meant to be colored in and used as hand puppets by the kids when they produce a play of the story. This...
Curated OER
Pantomime
There's no doubt that dramatic play and creative movement are both essential for a healthy early childhood education. Here is a lesson plan that promotes both. Youngsters think of activities and emotions. The words are written on pieces...
Curated OER
Vibrant Animals: Using an Actor's Body for Character Attributes
Students identify and portray specific character attributes through uprigth movement, creating a portrayal of an animal. They use vibrant, upright movement to convey the characteristics and temperament of specific animals. Finally,...
Curated OER
Prepositional Relationship Dance
Students learn the meaning of prepositions through movement. In this dance lesson, students choreograph a piece showing that they understand the meaning of various prepositions.
Curated OER
Dancing Levels in Space
Students practice mirroring human moves by performing a dance in class. In this physical education lesson, students utilize different spaces around them to perform a dance expressing their full motion. Students cooperate in pairs or...
Curated OER
Act it Out: Dramatizing Asian American Stories
Read and act out folktales, fairy tales, or myths from various Asian American cultures with your class. Each group reads a story aloud and then works together to create a short play or skit about the story. Suggestions for stories are...
Curated OER
Weddings Around the World
Weddings are a big deal for children. Most kids are very intrigued by them, and many have already been to one. The teacher reads the book, Weddings by Ann Morris to the class. Then, a discussion takes place regarding the basic traditions...
Curated OER
Reader's Theater: Presenting Asian Folktales
Students, working in groups, rewrite Asian folktales as Reader's Theater scripts. Depending on grade level, they visit Websites and copy assigned stories. Students then perform their versions for classmates.
Curated OER
Teach Me
Here is a lesson that expands on a classic teaching idea. Learners are encouraged to think of a skill they possess, or something cool they can do that can be taught to their classmates. Once the skills are identified, each student...
Curated OER
Lesson: More than Brushing my Teeth
Humor can often be found in everyday life. Young analysts critically examine a sculpture and apply what they discuss to their own life experiences. They perform skits of daily activities, such as brushing their teeth. Next, they make a...
Curated OER
Lesson: A Spider's Perspective
A fun way to grow a class of creative thinkers, is to add creative projects to your weekly line up. Kids pretend they are small insects or spiders crawling up the side of a huge building. They use vivid imagery, rich detail, and their...
Curated OER
Dance: Water Dancing
Examine the way water moves, drips, and splashes with an expressive dance. Learners discuss the ways in which water moves, then create dance sequences that show or describe water. There are several suggestions to adapt this lesson to...
Curated OER
Drama: Learn A Lesson from the Lion
Reading is reading, whether it's for drama or English class. Boost reading fluency, accuracy, intonation, and comprehension while fostering creative acting skills. Kids read the provided tale of "The Lion and the Mouse" several times in...
Curated OER
Same and Different Through Music and Art
This lesson is intended for a music class but would be a great way to teach compare and contrast to any class. Kindergarteners dance the Hokey Pokey to four different styles of music and examine two paintings of Humpty Dumpty, then...
Curated OER
Music: Caterpillars, How They Grow!
Put on some music and get moving as a way to represent the life cycle of a caterpillar. Kids listen to the story The Very Hungary Caterpillar, discuss the life cycle, then create vocal expression that represent each stage of the cycle....
Curated OER
The Box
Learners of any age can participate in this imagination and improve development activity. With the use of a small box, they work through a series of questions or situations posed by the teacher. Each group uses the box to create short...
Curated OER
Peter and the Wolf: A Russian Fairy Tale
A wonderful presentation explains a musical fairy tale. Perfect for an independent work station or as a link to send home for homework, this slideshow comes equipped with full audio. Each character, theme, and instrument from the piece...
Curated OER
Mirror Exercise
Kids get up and act! To promote inventiveness, timing, and clowning, they pair up and act as though they are looking in a mirror. Child A does a move while child B attempts to mimic it as closely as possible. This is a fun activity that...
Curated OER
Magic Wands and Wand Holders
If you were a fairy and had your very own magic wand, what would it look like? Little learners get to create a magic wand and holder of their very own, using paint, ribbon, and wood. Magic wands can be used when making story predictions,...
Curated OER
Street Cows
A light, and humorous lesson on "street cows" is here for you. Learners listen to the story, "Street Cows," which is embedded in the plan. On a map of the US and the World, they locate the cities where the "Cows on Parade" exhibit was...
Curated OER
Narrative pantomime
Assign parts to read aloud Millions of Cats by Wanda Gag and have your young mimes act out their roles. This story focus on how beauty within is more important than outward appearance. Conclude by having your class provide an illustrated...
Curated OER
We Tell Stories
Young readers bring characters to life by working in small groups to script and perform stories that contain a community concept. Detailed questions and activities are outlined for the class. Consider having your groups create...