A perfect activity for music lessons, planning performances, showcasing multilingual talent. While the resources are based on minibeasts, once children have grasped the concept, any topic can be used. Children bring in their home languages to explore the rhythm of language – would you clap “grasshopper” different from “butterfly”? How do long and short syllables give a rhythm to speech, and how can we use this together to bring out the music in all languages around us?
The activity encourages children to experiment with words, both in English and in their home languages, and can be easily expanded to include posters/labels, movement, introducing children’s linguistic knowledge to their peers. Be as creative as you like – and we would love to see/hear your performances.
Check out what the amazing Sacred Heart School in Leeds did with this activity, adapting it from minibeasts to owls!
Have you used this activity?
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