Table of Contents List of Exercises

Balloon Conductor- Student Led

About:

This game is a great game for to help student develop 'stage presence' that is being grounded and comfortable while interacting with a group. Students who are more impulsive have to slow down and connect my with their 'audience'. For student who are intitally anxious, the movement and attention to the ball helps them get to experience more postive excitement.

The purpose of this lesson:

• Students learn to pay attention to stopping and starting together as a group. This stopping and starting also sets up a later game for the group to play notes together on time.
• Help students particularly shy student feel joy and competence being in from of the class and having attention focused on them. Help group members develop their leadership skills.
• Students learn to follow different leaders, even ones who are just developing their skills.
• Students practice having clean, starts and stops.
• Student learn to develop feeling positive about their successes.
• Help members to experience positive arousal/excitement To encourage some playful movement. Develop hand eye coordination. Experience having everyone working together as a group.
• Develop attention skills. Students learn to hear and apprecaite the silence after a 'stop'.
• Make paying attention to the 'stop' a game like 'Simon Says'. Begin to set up patterns. Give group members experience of leading the group and follow different leaders.

Prerequisites:

• Ready
• Asleep
• Play Balloon Conductor - Teacher Led
• Ability to toss a balloon relatively straight up and down and catch it. Use Toss-1 BeanBag - To Self-Two Hand.

Directions:

Student stands up with balloon or large ball in hand. The student calls "ready".
Student throws the ball up as straight as possible. While the ball is in the air, the other students play a rumble on their instrument. The student can add 'fakes' into the tosses where he/she does let go of the ball.
After several tosses, the student calls "asleep".
This student passes the balloon or ball to the next student who is now the leader.

Note- many younger children have difficulty catching a ball. Balloons move slower and are easier to catch. Also balloons travel slower than balls so they give more time to play the rumble and prepare for the 'stop'.
"I will throw this balloon in the air. While it is in the air, play a rumble. As soon as I catch it, stop." Call "Sticks Ready" Do several balloon tosses, some higher some lower.




Glitches:

• Student does not begin with calling "Ready"
1. Remind them by asking, "How do we start the game?". "Say, 'Sticks Ready'".
2. Take Over the Problem Have Dragon make the mistakes and ask the class members to comment on his actions.


• Conductor moves so fast, of chaotic, few can follow.
1. []


• Student is 'conducting' and throws and chases balloon out of center of the circle.
1. Take over the Problem and have Dragon Puppet do the behavior. Discuss with the class
2. If after discussion of this behavior a student still does it, give them a Reset.


• Students besides the 'leader' grab at or swat at the balloon.
1. Take over the problem.

Needs Met:

Safety- game has clear rule. And an orderly form and taking turns.
Significance- students get to show leadership
Connection- students get to be part of the group
Growth- students exercise and develop their skill of paying attention
Growth - particularly shy students gain more confidence by being in front of the group.

Neuroscience and Psycho-Physiology Basis:

Having the ball as a prop to focus and also their physical movement helps them activate the Do- Deal system and deactivate the 'me-default system' thus feeling more present and engaged and less anxious.
?Visually tracking a moving ball activates and engages the orienting system?
? Other primitive motion sensing systems? For many people, social situations especially ones that might put them ‘on the spot’ create a lot of anxiety. Because of that anxiety some people avoid being part of groups, or take roles in the group which diminish them. This exercise helps participants get into movement. Moving help to counter balance the anxiety. When people are inactive is when they feel most anxious. According to Chamberlin we have three systems- The Me system, the Feel system and the Deal System. When people are inactive their attention frequently turns to the Me system. They easily ruminate on things that have gone wrong, or could go wrong. Another name for this is stage fright. As soon as a person starts moving and getting engaged, They switch into the Deal system.




Metaphor to Explore:

Leadership- What does a good leader do?

What leaders do you respect?

Extensions:

Walking Rhythm Squares
Conducting Rumbles
Two Balloon Conductors
Rumble while players Toss an the imaginary ball
Dying Cockroach, Engine Trouble
Performance This game can be used part of a performance.

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