Underwater Moves

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Age
3 - 5
Child Development
Balance, body control
Equipment
Music
How to Play
  • Children lie down and relax as they listen to soft music that would give the feeling of being underwater. Children listen to feel the soft, light quality of the music, slowly raising different body parts and letting them drift gently back to the floor.
  • Ask them: "What might you see underwater? What would you feel?" Then, children pretend to listen for the bubble rising up to the surface of the water and make their hands follow the bubbles.
  • Ask the children to pretend their hands are fish and make the fish swim. Ask them: "How do the fish move?" Next, children glide smoothly, quietly around the room, following hands, as the fish swim.
  • Encourage them to move as if they were in an aquarium. Ask children what they will be in the aquarium. Encourage children to move in their own space and explore different ways of moving.
  • Children work in groups of three or four to create an underwater world. They can watch other groups, looking into different aquariums.
Change it up / Alternatives / Additional Options
  • For children with impairments in flexibility or gross motor skills, encourage them to perform the movements as much as they can, understanding that it may look different to others. 
  • If you have a participant who uses a wheelchair, be intentional around the movements that you select to allow them to participate.
  • For children who are deaf or hard of hearing, act out the actions or provide pictures of the intended movements
  • If you have a child with another type of disability not mentioned above, they may be able to participate in this activity without adaptations or modifications
     

Source – OPHEA Early Learning Resource (2017)