Executive function
Toddlers watch a caregiver stop moving his/her body, relax arms, and lower his/her head when music stops.
Be Prepared: Select music that is lively but unlikely to be overstimulating. Arrange for another adult to turn on/off the recorded music.
[Draw attention to the gathering area by playing the lively music and dancing or moving your body in simple ways to the music. After several toddlers have joined the gathering, have the music turned off, stop moving your body, and lower your head.]
I had fun dancing to the music. What happened when the music stopped?
[Pause for responses. Repeat and expand responses. Example: “Jayson said ‘quit.’ I quit dancing when the music stopped.”]
I put my head down when the music stopped. I relaxed my arms. We are learning how to relax our arms when we calm down after doing something that gets us excited.
Watch me relax my arms and put down my head.
[Demonstrate relaxing your arms, using an approach that is similar to how you encourage toddlers to relax their arms during a calming-down activity. Demonstrate lowering your head. Describe how your chin is touching your chest.
Then encourage toddlers to relax their arms and lower their heads.]
Putting down our head helps us stop moving and focus on our body.
I am going to dance to the music again. You can help me remember what to do when the music stops!
[Turn on the music and dance or move enthusiastically, but briefly, to the music. Have the music stop but do not lower your head or relax your arms.]
The music stopped. What do I do?
[Pause for toddlers’ responses. Repeat and expand responses. Example: “Emilia said ‘arms.’ I want to relax my arms.”
Demonstrate and describe relaxing your arms and lowering your head.]
You watched me have fun dancing to music. I stopped dancing when the music stopped. I relaxed my arms. I put down my head. You helped me remember what to do when the music stopped!
Executive function
Toddlers move their bodies to music and then practice stopping moving, relaxing arms, and lowering their heads when the music stops.
Be Prepared: This activity is for toddlers who participated in Option 1. Arrange for an adult to turn on/off the recorded music.
Invite several toddlers to join you in moving our bodies (dancing) to music. Point to your ears and encourage toddlers to point to their ears. Explain that we listen carefully while we are moving our bodies so we know when the music stops. Demonstrate and describe (or invite toddlers to demonstrate and describe) what we do when the music stops. Emphasize relaxing our arms and putting down our heads. Remind toddlers that putting down our head helps us focus on our body.
Turn on the music and lead toddlers in moving their bodies (dancing) to the music. Have the music stop after a minute or less and lead toddlers in: (1) stopping moving/dancing, (2) relaxing our arms, and (3) putting down our heads. Offer verbal reminders as needed. Hold the relaxed-body position briefly. Repeat if toddlers remain interested. Conclude the session by emphasizing how we listened carefully. Invite toddlers to tell what we did when the music stopped.
The activity plan promotes self-regulation skills in ways similar to the Freeze Game introduced in Block 9. The current activity is more challenging than the Freeze Game because it suggests two separate actions—relaxing our arms and putting down our heads—instead of the one action of holding our bodies still when the music stops. Toddlers will differ in the ease with which they relax their arms and lower their head after the music stops. Some may find it challenging to stop moving. Others may enjoy using a part of calming-down practice (relaxing arms) and lowering their heads. Offer friendly reminders that also maintain a positive approach to the activity.
Extra support
Enrichment
Materials Needed: calm recorded music
Offer an adaptation of the activity using a calmer form of movement, such as moving our arms from side to side while sitting when the music plays. Continue to encourage toddlers to relax their arms and put down their heads when the music stops. This Interest Area activity helps toddlers practice the skills of listening, focusing, and remembering with a different music-accompanied movement and a different style of music. Provide verbal guidance as needed.
Materials Needed: music, music player
Preschool-age children will enjoy participating in Option 2. They may wish to demonstrate the three key actions triggered when music stops: stop moving, relax arms, and put down head. A school-age child may wish to manage the music with your guidance. A long period of doing movements to music is not suggested.
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