<p>Section 5</p><p>This One’s for You!—Dramatic Play—Observation Sheet</p><p>Use the following observation sheet to help you understand children’s dramatic play. </p><p>Instructions: Observe children’s dramatic play in two separate rooms. List below two short anecdotes of children’s dramatic play.</p><p>Observation #1:</p><p>Observation #2</p><p>1. For each anecdote complete the following</p><p>Obs. #1 Obs. #2</p><p>Age range of children</p><p>Sex</p><p>Period of time observed</p><p>Length of observation</p><p>Center (activity area) of room observed</p><p>2. What dramatic play themes were suggested in these observations by the amount </p><p> and kind of props available to the children? Does the supply in each situation you </p><p> observed seem adequate?</p><p>3. What roles did you observe children playing in these dramatic activities?</p><p>How do you think these roles are related to children’s real life experiences? </p><p>Explain. </p><p>TOFY section 5b-1 4. Consult the teachers in the two rooms in which you observed to learn how </p><p> information obtained through observing children’s dramatic play is used in </p><p> guiding children or in making future plans. Give examples in your reply.</p><p>5. In each of the centers/rooms in which you observed, what limits were placed on </p><p> children during dramatic play? How do you think these limits would change in an </p><p> outdoor dramatic activity?</p><p>This One’s for You!—Movement Activities</p><p>Movement activities are a natural part of the play for young children of all ages. Physical movement activities are generally divided into two types—gross motor and fine motor. </p><p>Both fine (small) and gross (large) motor activities need to be encouraged with young children. Gross motor skills develop in your children prior to fine motor skills.</p><p>Young children, for example, will be quite good at walking and running when they enter preschool. Skipping, galloping, and hopping develop later. The fine motor skills, however, are most often less developed in young children. Movement activities can be quite effective in working on these skills in a fun, positive way. </p><p>Since young children really enjoy physical activities, the wise teacher can incorporate practice of fine motor skills in a pleasurable way. The following general teaching suggestions include activities for both fine and gross motor skill development. </p><p>Of course, skill level of the children will determine which of these suggestions to incorporate in the movement program.</p><p>Gross Motor Activities </p><p>TOFY section 5b-2 1. Encourage climbing activities (within reason, but a child is usually more </p><p> capable than overly cautious adults give credit for). </p><p>2. Encourage jumping activities: hopscotch, jumping rope, broad jump, hop-skip-</p><p> jump activities, etc. </p><p>3. Encourage running activities. </p><p>4. Encourage proper walking activities; stress and emphasize arm movement with </p><p> legs and chest “out,” chin up. </p><p>5. Encourage throwing and catching games: ball, balloons, objects, etc. Use </p><p> different sizes and weights. </p><p>6. Encourage other physically oriented games: tag, hide-and-seek, Simon Says, </p><p>Captain-May-I, follow the leader, etc. </p><p>7. Encourage skipping activities. </p><p>8. Encourage calisthenics. </p><p>9. Encourage dancing activities. </p><p>10. Encourage the walking of steps. </p><p>11. Encourage the development of muscular strength. Pushing and pulling </p><p> activities will help. </p><p>12. Encourage kicking activities. </p><p>13. When choosing equipment, look for various types that can be used both indoors</p><p> and outdoors. An old tire swing is an inexpensive playground toy. Also </p><p> consider barrels, ropes, pipes, boxes, etc. </p><p>Fine Motor Activities </p><p>TOFY section 5b-3 1. Encourage balancing activities: walk on a board, walk on a line, stand on one </p><p> leg, walk heel-to-toe, etc. You can also have the child balance something on her</p><p> head, hand, etc. </p><p>2. Encourage eye movement activities: tracking from left to right, pointing, eyes </p><p> following a moving object, “flashlight writing.” </p><p>3. Develop the ability to stop an action as in games of “statue” or “freeze.” This </p><p> helps promote general, as well as specific, motor control and coordination. </p><p>4. Promote both near point and far point vision, changing frequently. </p><p>Choose one or several of the above activities to use with children. Describe your experience. What was the most successful activity? The least? Why? How would you adjust these activities for older children? Do you feel that older children still need gross motor activities? Why?</p><p>This One’s for You!—Nonlocomotor/Locomotor Actions</p><p>All sorts of sequences of nonlocomotor actions can be used for warm-up exercises and relaxation. The image of a balloon growing and collapsing is an image with which children can easily relate. Once the children’s balloon body stays all blown-up, it can float and twist on an adventure until it “pops” and has to begin all over again. Use an inexpensive slide whistle to guide this exploration and dance.</p><p>Locomotion or traveling through space is often what children consider to be dancing. Children respond to locomotion because it is an exhilarating and freeing activity and, as a result, “horse dances” and “car dances” are very popular with young boys and </p><p>TOFY section 5b-4 girls. A tambourine or drum is an excellent instrument to guide and phrase children’s favorite actions—running, galloping, and jumping. Children practice controlling their bodies by contrasting locomotor actions and stillness or holding their body shape. A phrase of movement is like a sentence with punctuation at the end. Various suggestions such as “freeze,” “hold it,” “whoa,” “put your brakes on,” and “hold your muscles,” help children stop their locomotor activity and provides a safety precaution. </p><p>Shapes and Balance</p><p>One way for children to practice their balance and stability is by making shapes with their whole body. Basic body shapes are small, tall, wide, and twisted, but all kinds of shapes can be made emphasizing things or different body parts. Shapes can be made on the floor, sitting, kneeling, standing, and even in the air. Children can copy shapes or move one another into shapes. Children enjoy change games where one group makes solid tree shapes, for example, while another group flies through the spaces and around the “trees” as the wind. On the cue “change,” the children reverse roles. Similarly, snow swirling around frozen statues or fish swimming among the seaweed provide structures for children to practice their locomotor and stability skills within a playful and creative environment.</p><p>Simon Says</p><p>Play “Simon Says.” Stand at the front of the class and give commands. Carry out all of the commands, but tell the children to obey only the ones preceded by “Simon says.” For example, if you say, “Simon says: hands on your hips,” everyone does it. But if you say, </p><p>TOFY section 5b-5 “Run in place,” no one but you should be running. A variation is to say “Do this” or “Do that.” “Do this” means that the children should move like you are moving, while “Do that” means for them to stand motionless. Those who do not listen and move at the wrong time must sit down and wait two turns before playing again.</p><p>TOFY section 5b-6</p>