Cute Brain Break Videos

I came across this link on Pinterest: http://teachtrainlove.com/20-brain-break-clips-fight-the-fidgeting/ It has some cute videos for brain breaks and help kids get rid of their wiggles :)

Here are the videos:

1)  ‘The Wobble’ Instructional Video
2) Madagascar’s ‘I Like to Move It’ Video
3)  Wyclef Jean ‘Electric City’  Music Video
4) Just Dance Kids ‘Get the Sillies Out’ Video
5)  ‘The Sid Shuffle’ Ice Age Dance Video
6)  Shake Break Video
7) ‘Footloose’ Animated Dance Video
8)  ‘The Ding Dong Song’ Crazy Frogs Video
9) The Learning Station’s ‘Stomp and Clap’ Video
10)  Mario Dance Video
11)  ‘Respect’ Rap Video
12)  ‘The Cha Cha Slide’ Instructional Video
13)  ‘If You’re a Kid’ Instructional Video
14) Dancing Pandas Video
15) Sesame Street:  ‘Share it Maybe’ Video

16) Cee Lo Green’s ‘Kung Fu Fighting’ Video
17) Backyardigan’s ‘I Gotta Feeling’ Video
18)  Some Nights:  Wreck it Ralph Video
19) Koo Koo Kanga Roo’s ‘What’s That You Say?’ Video
20)  The Skeleton Dance Video

Xtranormal

Xtranormal.com is a site that allows anyone to make 3D animation movies. The site is free and very user friendly. The creative uses in the classroom are only limited by your imagination. Virtually any content area could potentially use Xtranormal. Students could create movies about a historical event, scientific principle, math rule, or characters in a novel. An added benefit is that the program requires students to write dialogue which is often challenging for them. The customizable features of Xtranormal make it very appealing to students and creates fun learning opportunities that are creative. Below are some example videos that I found online for different subject areas.

Social Studies- Bill of Rights

Math- Adding and Subtracting Fractions

Science- Body Systems

Song Writing

     One of my students' favorite activities is writing songs about something we are studying. Music can bring so much joy into a classroom. When structured properly, this assignment not only helps students remember content but also encourages creativity and builds public speaking and performance skills.
     I allow students to work in groups when we write songs and always give them guidelines for what I  expect. If it is about a historical topic (such as the plague) I give a minimum number of facts required. If the song is about something procedural (such as "how a bill becomes a law") they must cover all steps of the process. Students are also given time requirements so they know how long they have to work on their songs. It is important to include time for "rehearsing" if you plan to perform them.
     I make sure to use performance opportunities not only to teach content but also "good audience" skills. Students should be supportive of their peers and have fun. I HIGHLY recommend recording the songs! Not only do the kids like it but it is also great for sharing with parents.

Here are some songs from the 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 school years.

Songs on the Black Plague:

Brain Dance

The Brain Dance was developed by Anne Green Gilbert, a Seattle based dance instructor. It is composed of eight developmental movement patterns that healthy human beings naturally move through in the first year of life. The eight patterns are:

• Breath
• Tactile
• Core-Distal
• Head-Tail
• Upper-Lower
• Body Side
• Cross Lateral
• Vestibular

I have included a link to an instruction sheet by Anne Green Gilbert on how to do the Brain Dance below. There are many benefits of doing the Brain Dance with your students. Besides being fun and getting students' blood moving it helps reorganize the neurological system, increase blood and oxygen flow to the respiratory system and brain, and enhance core support, connectivity, and alignment.

“The BrainDance is an exercise I developed in 2000 comprised of eight fundamental movement patterns that we move through in the first year of life,” from touching and squeezing to creeping and crawling. “These movement patterns wire the central nervous system by laying the foundation for appropriate behavior and attention, eye convergence necessary for reading, sensory-motor development and more.” -Anne Green Gilbert


How to do the Brain Dance- instructions by Anne Green Gilbert

A group of 5th graders doing the Brain Dance

Article About Anne Green Gilbert- "Dance Teacher Uses Movement to Sharpen Minds"

Foldables

Foldables are one of my favorite activities to bring creativity to the learning experience. Foldables are basically different ways to fold paper to create learning tools. Dinah Zike is the queen of foldables and has written numerous books on the topic. I have personally used her Social Studies books and love them. The great thing about foldables is that they can be used in virtually any content area. They are a fun and kinesthetic way for children to learn. I have used them for vocabulary, comparing and contrasting, question stems, hierarchies, timelines... the applications are endless.

Here are some Foldable Resources:


Video of Dinah Explaining the History of Foldables:

 

Video of Dinah Explaining Some of the Basic Folds:

PDF of A Foldable Book by Dinah Zike  
This is a great place to start if you've never used foldables before


More Foldable Instructions
This site is another useful resource on using folables

Sample Foldables: