October 2014
Partner Learning Projects (Continued)
Cars
One child is the driver and the other child is the car. The car places her elbows at right angles and closes her eyes. The driver stands behind the car and drives using the elbows like a steering wheel. The driver must say, “forwards,” “backwards,” “stop,” “turn right,” and make other verbal commands. Exchange places after several minutes.
Yankee Doodle Dance
Children hold hands facing their partner. Put one foot in front of the other and begin rocking back and forth as you sing:
Yankee Doodle went to town (Rock back and forth holding hands.)
Riding on a pony.
He stuck a feather in his cap
And called it macaroni.
Yankee Doodle keep it up. (Right heel up.)
Yankee Doodle dandy. (Left heel up.)
Mind the music and the step (Right heel and left heel.)
And with the girls be handy. (Bow to your partner.)
Hello, Neighbor!
(Tune: “Good Night, Ladies!”)
Hello, neighbor. (Wave to partner.)
What do you say? (Give high five.)
It’s going to be a (Slap, clap, tap hands.)
Happy day.
Greet your neighbor. (Shake hands.)
Boogie on down. (Wiggle hips.)
Give a bump, (Bump hips.)
And turn around. (Turn around.)
Ride That Pony!
Ride, ride, ride that pony, (Face partner and begin clapping
Get up and ride that big, black pony. to the beat. Bounce up and down
Ride, ride, ride that pony. as if riding on a pony.)
This is what they told me.
Front, front, front, my baby. (Clap hands up in the air with partner.)
Side, to side, to side, my baby. (Gently bump hips on the side.)
Back, back, back, my baby, (Turn around and bump back sides.)
This is what they told me. (Find a new partner.)
Patty Cake
When children patty cake with a partner they are practicing self-regulation, eye-hand coordination, body spatial awareness, crossing the midline, and a myriad of other skills. In addition to traditional hand clap games and rhymes children can:
• Say nursery rhymes as they patty cake.
• Say the ABC’s.
• Count by one’s, five’s, ten’s, etc.
• Practice spelling words and word wall words. (Clap your hands as you say the word. Cross and tap as you say each letter. High five in the air as you repeat the word.)
Criss Cross Applesauce – Do this on each other’s backs:
Cross cross, (Make an “x” on back.)
Applesauce, (Wiggle fingers down back.)
Spiders crawling up your back. (Crawl fingers up back.)
Warm breeze. (Gently blow on neck.)
Gentle squeeze. (Hug from behind.)
Now you’ve got the shiveries! (Tickle fingers down back.)
Plant a Garden – Do on each other’s backs:
Dig up the dirt. (Knead back with fingers.)
Rake the ground. (Stroke down with fingertips.)
Dig holes for the seeds. (Pretend to dig holes with index finger.)
Cover up the seeds. (Finger covers up seeds.)
Pat the dirt down. (Pat back with both hands.)
Here comes the rain. (Lightly touch the back with fingertips.)
Up come the plants. (Make upward movement with hands.)
Then you pick, pick, pick. (Pretend to pick plants.)
Spider Challenge
Children sing the “Itsy Bitsy Spider” as they make the motions on a partner’s back. Next, have children stand next to their partner and extend their inside arms around their partner’s waist. Each child will use her outside arm to sing the song and cooperate with their partner to make the motions.
Fist-Fast-Math
Children get a partner to play this game similar to “Rock, Scissors, Paper.”
Partners face each other and hold out the right palm. They make a fist with their left hand and place it on the palm. They slowly tap their fist two times as they say, “Fist, fast.” As they say “math” they stick out zero, one, two, three, four, or five fingers. Players add up the number of fingers and then continue with “fist, fast, math.”
• Adapt this game for greater than, lesser than, and equal.
• Use both fists and add up fingers on four hands.
• Write down responses.
Back Writing
One child is the “scribe” and the other child is the “tablet.” The “scribe” makes shapes, letters, words, etc. on the “tablet.” The “tablet” tries to identify the information and then they switch places.
Conclusion
"All adults were once children, although very few of
them actually remember it." The Little Prince
Think back to your school days and how important friendships were to you.
By integrating some of these partner and group activities into your school day you will be providing children an excellent opportunity to develop social skills as well as practice academic skills in a meaningful way.
Remember, the more time children spend in front of a screen, the more they need face-to-face experiences with another human being!!!!