In this creative movement lesson designed for 2nd grade, students will experience slow changes in the earth's surface through movement.
Learning Objectives/Goals
Students will explore and contrast different movement qualities, compare movement and stillness, and create patterns in space. • Students will experience slow changes in the earth’s surface through movement.
Materials Needed
- Printed photos of land formations caused by erosion (mountains, canyons, arches, glaciers)
- 4 sounds of weather that cause erosion (wind, rain, rivers, glaciers/cracking ice)
- Sound system: https://open.spotify.com/track/63XSwhhn7fbrlSZxL8Q7Nq?si=8a1719679cee462a
- https://open.spotify.com/track/5D75c8hGPji05dzFzY0dPQ?si=1566c0c189a94b6d
- https://open.spotify.com/track/4m4DBx9Wps7r5Qhoso1GXz?si=7423d8f7255e433a
- https://open.spotify.com/episode/519elSoxawSTQ4qOzZzlZn?si=1ec5e37d4f084110
Introduction
Set class expectations, space boundaries, and goals of the class.
Warm-Up
Have the students spread out in space and have them create their own rock shape. Ask the students if rocks are smooth or bumpy, big or small and have them notice how each of their shapes are different just as every rock is different. Have them create 3 different rock shapes of different sizes and on different levels. Have the students move through the space by floating, swooshing, pushing, crumbling and melting. Direct the students to move on different levels and tempos. The students will freeze in a rock shape between each of these action words.
Investigate
Have the students gather together and sit down. Bring out 4 pictures of land formations (arch, mountain, canyon, and wind tunnel). Ask them what words describe each picture and have them create a group shape that looks like the picture. Have the students slowly “erode” into a smaller mountain, wider canyon, etc. Do this for each land formation picture so they create 4 group shapes. Have the students spread out into the space. Play one of the weather sounds that cause erosion and ask the students what it sounds like and what words describe the sound. Explain that erosion happens slowly even though the forces that cause erosion often move quickly. Have them move through space while playing the sound. Do this for each of the 4 sounds.
Create
Put it all together into a dance. Place the 4 pictures in each corner of the room. Starting at one picture, the students will make the corresponding shape that they created earlier and then slowly move into the eroded shape. Play one of the sound effects and have them move like the sound to the next picture. Create the next shape, erode, then play the next sound to move to the next picture. Practice going around the circle 2-3 times.
Reflect
Ask the students:
- What is something new you learned?
- What are the 4 causes of erosion?
Extension to the Lesson
Split the students into 2 groups (apples, and pears). Have the apples start in one of the group land formation shapes. The pears will move past the apples as one of the causes of erosion. The apples will slowly erode as the pears pass them. The pear will freeze in one of the land formation shapes and the apples will pass them as a different cause of erosion. Repeat switching groups 2-4 times.
Follow-up Resources
