Indoor Movement Ideas

Stuck inside today? Or just need a little movement break? Here are some ideas

Freeze Dance 

Play any music your child enjoys dancing to, and tell them to freeze when the music stops. Pause the music a few times during the song and say, "freeze!" (This game helps children learn to control their movement and remember rules.)

Follow the Leader

Tell your child to watch closely and do what you do. Start doing a motion and have your child imitate you, then swtich to a new motion. Once your child has the hang of following, let them be the leader and you follow their moves. Examples to get started: clap, jump, march, flap arms, squat & stand, shake hips, etc.

Red Light, Green Light

“Red light” means stop/freeze, and “green light” means to go/continue. You can play this game in many ways – while walking down a sidewalk, inside dancing, jumping, or any other movement. (At this age, kids enjoy the challenge of listening and controlling their movements, and aren’t as interested in a competitive game.) Most kids also enjoy having a turn to be the one calling “red light/green light” for others.

GoNoodle!

When we have to have indoor recess at school, we often use videos from GoNoodle.com. Here are some of the class' favorites this year (and the names the children use to refer to them). After you make your free account, use the search feature to find these songs.

• Catman in Space (aka "Space cat")
• Believer  (aka "Hey! or That One We’re Really Good At!)
• Little Green Froggy
• Zap it
• This or that - (aka "That Song" or "Cameron’s song")
• Dinosaur Stomp - (aka Dino Stomp)
• Wobbly Man
• Racing Heart
• Perrito Feliz - (aka "The Little Dancing Puppy Song")
• It’s Your Birthday - (aka The Birthday Song")
• Pump It - (aka "The Workout Song")
• Melting
• Clap It Out - (aka "The Syllable Song")
• Baby Shark
• Go Bananas
• Run the Red Carpet
• Chicken Dance
• Class Dismissed
• Slo-Mo Machine - (aka "Slow Motion Machine")
• Get Loose

Let us know if you discover some new favorites so we can share with the class!

Other Indoor Movement Resources:

Animal Yoga with Koya Webb
Dino Yoga

Cosmic Kids Yoga (creative storytelling involves kids doing movement to help tell the story)