Let’s be honest, even adults have trouble social distancing. It’s just natural as human beings to want to get closer to the person you’re interacting with. And unless our mind is on it all the time, it’s easy to wander nearer than we should to the people around us.
So it’s no wonder that children also have trouble social distancing. I decided to approach it like I would any new concept with my students. Fist I introduced with concrete examples (showing two yardsticks put together), encouraged them to make connections (what can you think of that’s 6 feet long), and displayed visual aids (reminder posters in the classroom). But of course, one of the most important parts of learning is independent application and practice!
So to help kids practice social distancing, some of my colleagues and I put together a list of games to play with them outside.
Game #1: “6 Feet, My Friend!”
Find a kickball diamond or a basketball court and have all the students spread out. They walk around the court, trying to stay six feet away from each other at all times. If someone gets too close, they call out a friendly reminder, such as “Six feet, my friend!” or “Too close, my friend!”.
At any point the teacher may yell “Freeze!”. If any two people are closer than 6 feet (you can even bring the yardsticks outside to measure if you want to), then they are out of the game for one round. Increase from walking to running if the game is too easy.
Game #2: “The Wind Blows”
Stand in a large circle (six feet apart from each person) outside. The teacher calls out “The wind blows for anyone who _____” and they complete the sentence with some kind of description, such as “anyone who is wearing blue” or “anyone who has a younger sibling” or “anyone who like strawberry ice cream”.
All the students to whom the phrase applies run into the middle and try to find a new place in the circle. The challenge is for them to also stay six feet away from each other. If students are having a hard time keeping apart, add in yelling “Freeze” at random times to check their distance and call out students who are too close.
Game #3: “Egg, Chicken, Dinosaur, Alligator, Dragon” aka “Evolution”
Once your students have some practice with the first two games, you can try this next game to put their skills to the test. In this game, students all start out as an “Egg” (hands in a circle above their heads). They walk around until they can make eye contact with another egg. They say that egg’s name to make sure they see each other, and then they do roshambo with them. They must stay six feet apart. Whoever wins goes up to the next level of chicken (arms folded like chicken wings). Then they have to find another chicken to roshambo with.
The game goes on – they roshambo with someone at their same level, the winner goes on to the next level, and the loser has to go backwards a level. After chicken is alligator (arms open and close like alligator jaws), after alligator is dinosaur (two fingers like claws in front of their body), and after dinosaur is dragon. When someone reaches dragon, they are the winner, and the game is over and everyone starts over as an egg.
At any point the teacher may yell “Freeze!”. If any two people are closer than 6 feet (you can even bring the rulers outside if you want to), then they have to go all the way back to being an egg.
Game #4: “Noodle Freeze Tag”
This requires every child to have their own pool noodle, labeled with their name (Amazon has an inexpensive value pack here). One end of their noodle is for them to hold, and the other end is to tag. The tricky rule is that to tag someone, they have to tag that person’s pool noodle, not their body. T
wo people are it. They run around and tag with their pool noodles. If a child’s noodle gets tagged, they are frozen. Other children can unfreeze them by tagging their pool noodle.
This game is better with older kids, because it takes reminders to have them hold the noodles out in order to maintain six feet. But it’s definitely a fun way to incorporate an actual game of tag!
Game #5: “Spaced Out!” – to practice social distanced lines
Designate where the line will be, and where the running area will be. Students start by running around, then a teacher calls out “Space out!” When they say that, the students have to run to the line area and create a line with six feet between them as fast as they can. Then the teacher checks and if anyone is closer than 6 feet. Keep playing until they can all do it correctly. You can give them a specific line order, or just have it be a random order.
How are you preparing for the changes we'll be dealing with at
school in the fall?
xoxo
Laura
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