Recess Time!
Activity Sheet

Recess Time!

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One of the keys to staying with a physical activity plan is to make it fun!  Pretend you are in elementary school again, and it's Recess Time!
Hand Shakes Itsy-Bitsy Spider Paper Plate Fans
If you're happy & you know it! Make It Rain Synchronized Chair Dancing
  Hand Shakes
Hand Shakes Model T Hand Shake:  Turn hands in a circular motion, as if you were cranking an old car.
Milk the Cow Hand Shake:  One person holds pointer finger and pinky finger down, other person milks the cow.  Switch roles.

Dainty Hand Shake:  Wrap pinky fingers together and shake.
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  Itsy-Bitsy Spider
Everyone stand.  As you sing the song this time, exaggerate the hand motions, and use motions for stretching.

Song:

The itsy-bitsy spider crawled up the water spout.
Down came the rain and washed the spider out.
Out came the sun and dried up all the rain
And the itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again.

Repeat song - but do hand motions with a partner.

Itsy-Bitsy Spider
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Paper Plate Fans
Each person receives two "fans."  Place one fan in each hand.
Script:

Fan yourself with the left hand and then the right.  Fan yourself with both fans.  Enjoy it, you've worked hard for it.  Breathe in deeply, fan yourself some more, it feels good.  Now fan yourself, now your neighbor, now yourself, now your other neighbor.  Now fan in front of yourself, now fan your neighbor across the way.  Fan behind you, now fan the part of your body you've been sitting on.  Put your fans together and fan the whole room!
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If you're happy and you know it!

If you're happy and you know it!
Stand and sing this song:

If you're happy and you know it clap your hands (2 claps)
If you're happy and you know it clap your hands (2 claps)
If you're happy and you know it, then your heart will surely show it,
If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands (2 claps)

Second verse:  Stomp your feet
Third verse:  Shout hooray
Fourth verse:  Do all three
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Make It Rain

This activity requires silence from everyone.  Everyone stand.  4 "runners" walk from the front of the room to the back of the room.  Participants do what runner is doing (as runner gets to each row).

1st runner - rub hands gently
2nd runner - click fingers
3rd runner - gently pat legs with hands
4th runner - quickly pat legs

Reverse order (go to gently patting legs, to clicking fingers, to rubbing hands)
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Synchronized Chair Dancing Synchronized Chair Dancing
To start, everyone does the same thing at the same time.  (Follow example of the leader.)  Start by sitting with both feet on the ground.
Phase 1
  1. Left leg over right leg - return to both feet on floor.
  2. Right leg over left leg - return to both feet on floor.
  3. Palm of left hand pushed skyward - return.
  4. Palm of right hand pushed skyward - return.
  5. Repeat steps 1-4.
  6. Roll hands in front of you and then throw hands skyward.
  7. Raise hands in air, then sway like branches blowing in the wind.
Phase II

Now you're ready for advanced synchronized chair dancing!  These actions are done in sequence (like a wave).

Watch the person to your right and begin your motion only after the person to your right has begun the motion.

  1. Right leg over left leg and return both feet to floor.
  2. Left leg over right leg and return both feet to floor.
  3. Stand quickly and throw arms in air and sit quickly.
  4. Stand, turn a complete circle and quickly sit down.
  5. Stand, flap arms like a chicken 3 times, sit quickly.
  6. Stand, clap hands twice, say your favorite TV show, clap hands twice, sit down.
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Small Victories logo Dept of Family & Consumer Science logo WIN Wyoming logo

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Adapted from a resource by Betty Holmes.  Small Victories, a mini-lesson series from WIN Wyoming and Department of Family & Consumer Sciences, University of Wyoming Cooperative Extension Service.  www.uwyo.edu/winwyoming 0203; slightly revised 0706
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Updated on 10/19/2006