Teachers up and down the country might find their pupils returning to them this week, full of beans! So why not channel their surplus energy into an enjoyable warm up activity? We have included four fabulous ideas below:
1. Hide and Seek
A fun game that will burn off some of the extra energy left over from the festive season.
You will need:
- Space to move around
- 2 x Finger Cymbals (or another small percussive instrument)
How to play:
- Ask the class to sit in a circle
- Select a child to be the “seeker” – they sit in the middle with their eyes closed
- Choose another to be the “hider” – they are given two sets of finger cymbals (or equivalent)
- The “hider” may hide one set of finger cymbals, somewhere in the classroom but use the other set to trick the “seeker” into thinking they have hidden the cymbals elsewhere, by making noise and distracting them
- Once the “hider” is satisfied with their hiding place and distraction, they return the remaining finger cymbals to the teacher
- The “seeker” may then open their eyes and begin seeking out the hidden finger cymbals
- Children sitting in the circle around the “seeker” should “clap” when the “seeker” is getting close to the hiding spot
- Once the finger cymbals have been found, reset the game with a new “hider” and “seeker”
2. Tissue Dance
The best game for getting rid of fidgety, excited energy
You will need:
- Space to move around
- A box of tissues
How to play:
- Clear the classroom, so that there is space to move
- Give each child a tissue, which they must balance on their head
- Turn on some music, and allow children to dance
- The aim of the game is to dance around without losing their tissue
- If the tissue falls from their head, but they catch it before it touches the floor, they may continue in the game
- Should the tissue fall from their head and touch the floor, the child is “out”
- This is a game of “last one standing”
3. Yes or No
This game requires a little bit of concentration – one that is better for upper KS2
You will need:
- No additional resources
How to play:
- The teacher says or sings a pattern, e.g. Yes, no, no, no, no, yes, no, no
- Children must sing the pattern back but the opposite, e.g. No, yes, yes, yes, yes, no, yes, yes
- Teacher can start off with “easy” patterns and make it harder as the class progresses
- Children can earn or lose points by getting the pattern right or wrong
- They could perhaps start off with 10 points, and if they end on 10 points or more, earn themselves 5 minutes extra play time or golden time
4. Pub Quiz
A great way to recap lessons learned and refocus children after their break
You will need:
- A list of pre-prepared questions, based on last term’s music syllabus
- Paper and pencils
How to play:
- Arrange the class into mixed ability groups of 5-6 children (or let them choose their own teams)
- The groups should have a “team name” and should appoint a scribe
- The teacher reads out their pre-prepared questions and the team have 30 seconds to confer, and the scribe write down the answer
- Once at the end of the quiz, teams can swap answer sheets and mark their peers’ responses
- House points can be allocated as rewards, and this type of pub quiz can be used as a recap for any curriculum subject