Dance is an excellent way for kids to get moving, and it’s an enjoyable activity that fosters teamwork, coordination, and a love of music. Fun dances can be found all over the web for kids to learn in a safe environment. With these 10 dance games for kids, you’ll never find yourself at a loss for something new to try out with your gang of dancer kids.
But before we go on, let’s go over some general dance information.
The Significance of Dance in Education
Dance is an activity that involves moving and using the whole body and a full range of motion and expression. When you’re dancing, your body moves to allow you to use the rhythm and music of the song around you. It can be done in large groups or pairs.
There are many benefits to having dance as an educational activity in school. Dance can increase feelings of achievement, improve confidence, and boost self-esteem. Educators have discovered that dance can also have a positive effect on the following areas:
Physical Health
Dance is a lot of fun because it involves a lot of movement and energy. It encourages kids to do more physical activity, which is important for their overall fitness development. Dance also encourages kids to become more flexible, increase their range of motion, and improve balance. They are developing strong muscles and bones as they move about. It improves their gross motor skills as well.
Cognitive Development
Dance helps with coordination, planning, and problem-solving skills. It can also improve children’s concentration and attention skills. Children who participate in dance instruction are more likely to be able to follow directions, follow instructions, complete tasks alone, and improve their attention span.
Social Development
Dance activities improve children’s social skills. It helps build friendships and is an important part of the school experience for kids. Dance is a great way to make new friends because it is a social activity with many different types of people (like the kids class you teach).
Emotional Development
Dance helps boost not only physical health but also emotional health too. It improves confidence and self-esteem in children. It also helps them to create healthier and happier relationships with their peers.
Here at Montessori Academy, we believe very strongly in the value of dance for children. We incorporate dance into our curriculum regularly and encourage kids to dance on their own whenever and wherever they can be it at home, in the classroom, or even in their backyard!
Dancing can be a fun activity for kids of all ages, especially if you have music. Some kids play musical chairs, others learn a dance routine, and some have fun moving to random beats. We have compiled a list of ten great dances games for kids.
10 Best Dance Games For Kids
1. Emoji Dance
Emoji is an expression used by people around the world. Children love this game because they can use it to express themselves more effectively. There are many different ways to play the game. You can make your cards or download free ones online.
You should play a happy song when you want to make your child smile. When you want to make your kid feel better, you can play sad songs. Songs that express different emotions should be played when you’re trying to teach your child about how people feel.
2. Balloon Dance
The balloon dance is a great party game for children. Balloons are easy to use as props. Provide children with balloons and instruct them to juggle the balloon instead of letting it fall.
In order to make the game more challenging, ask kids not to use palms. The person who holds the balloon for the longest time wins the game. This dance is an excellent activity for hand and leg coordination. A child will also need to develop their awareness and control of the space in front of them.
3. Ribbon Dancing
All you need is one of these sticks with a ribbon on top. You can buy an original one or make your own fancy ribbon stick from a twig or a dowel and some leftover ribbons. Next, turn on some music and let your kids dance around while you watch.
It is an excellent exercise for the lower and upper arms. Also, it is a great way to build confidence and stamina because kids have to maintain good posture while dancing.
4. High Five Dance
High Fives are one of the coolest things about childhood. Children love to do this dance. It is an excellent ice breaker, and it helps connect children. To enjoy this activity, ask your children to form pairs. Give each pair some time to get ready.
A pair of dancers must perform a choreographed routine using hand gestures and body movements. They will have to make a dance with high fives, claps, double fives, low fives, and snapping. It is a fun activity that your child can enjoy without music.
5. Remote Dance
Your children are having fun at the party. You can control them by using a pretend remote. You may also use a real remote or a flashcard with remote buttons. You play the music low when you call out a word. You can also use a flashcard with words.
Children make moves according to the terms that are called out. For example, if you call out ‘Rewind,’ children need to go back or jog backward. And if you call out ‘Forward,’ their dance moves are quick.
6. Paintbrush Dance
Children should be encouraged to use their imagination by playing this game. They must imagine that they have a brush on their hand or arm and then paint the surrounding space with that body part.
To play this game, write down the different parts of the body on a chit of paper. For instance, you can write down hands, nose, elbows, knees, or head. As the chit is called out, the kid will paint the floor, and everything around her with that body part stated in the chit. The imaginary paintbrush shifts to the next body part mentioned in another chit. For instance, if the imaginary paintbrush is on the elbow, your little one will paint around him using the elbow.
7. Jumping Jack Dance
Children are bubbling with energy. So it is a good dance game to help them burn off excess energy and engage them in some great physical exercise. Peppy music is needed to make this work.
Kids need to jump as high as possible. The higher, the better! The weirdest and the best jumps from kids will be considered. You can give those kids some stars.
8. The Animal Dance
This game requires children to call out the names of animals and then imitate them by dancing. The game is good for the child’s imagination and learning.
Write the names of various animals on separate chits. Call out an animal name from the chit.
Little kids will have to make the noise of that animal and take a fun dance as they perceive the animal to be. It is quite fascinating to see the animal moves children come up with. Ensure you have a variety of animals that little ones connect with, such as birds, snakes, and lions.
9. Animal mask dance
Little ones have to observe and learn the movements of various animals and transform them into dance steps. This dance activity boosts their observation skills and creativity. To play, you may need some animal masks given to children and a phone or a TV.
Before doing the activity, show your children the behavior and movement of animals on the TV. It helps them understand how to do the dance. Allow some time for practice. After that, play the music and let the children dance. Record and show them how they danced; it could bring out a lot of positive emotions in them.
10. Say Ola to Hula
It is a famous Hawaiian dance tradition that has to turn into a global kid’s dance game. You may need a hula hoop to enjoy this.
Play a nice Hawaiian song and make the children dance with the hula hoop. The best hula dancer can claim a prize or small rewards like stars. What’s good about this activity is it is not necessary that your children know how to hula hoop around the waist. It could be around the arm too. Children can also use it as a simple prop and make funky dance moves.
The Takeaway
Dance is a great activity for kids. It is entertaining, educational, and fun, and they love it. Dance helps your kid develop motor skills like balance, coordination, rhythm, and spatial awareness. It also boosts their confidence because they get the chance to do something they feel good about. Because of these benefits, it makes dance one of the most vital educational activities in school.
Here at Montessori Academy, our goal is to help parents become more confident in their child’s development. We have created a unique Montessori dance program that is fun, engaging, and very educational. Just like other areas of learning, we have developed the right process to engage your child and create a lifelong love for education. To find out more information on our unique dance program or any other programs, please call us at (310) 215 -3388 for Culver City and (323) 795-0200 for West Adams.
