Wiggles / Stop and Go
Purpose of this lesson:
The main purpose of doing the Wiggles game is to help students get their body moving to in such as way that they get into a state of safety and positive emotion that frees them up to have more approach behaviors.
Wiggling and shaking is how much of the animal world releases tension, stress and even trauma. It is also how much of the animal world can celebrate.
Wiggles work well because they are hard to do wrong! We start with easy natural movement, then gradually shape these movements. By having students do their natural mmovements, we reduce or eliminate much of the fear of failure.
Largely the teacher looks at what the students are doing with their bodies. The teacher asks them to essentaully do what they are doing. Gradually this loop creates more safety and engagement.
As students as students feel safe more and more of this movement can be shaped. Also student can develop a greater ability to stop and have with clear endings.
As students have greater safety they are gradually invited to do more challenging movements.
As the year goes on students are given more opportunity and responcibility to lead these movements.
Wiggles is usually done to a live drumming or other live music.
Students learn to hear the signals in the music to hear starts, dynamics and endings.
Note: across much of the globe and across most of human history music and movement was and is organized by in the moment signals. Organizing a piece by writing on a page is a very new invention.
Other teachers, adults and students also learn to play music to accompany the wiggles/ 'Stop and Go' exercises.
Movements include:
- Wiggles your feet
- Wiggle your eye brows. Note: moving parts of the face can be easier for shy or fearful and less energized students.
- Wiggle your Nose. You can wiggle it with the muscles of your face or you can use your fingers to wiggle it.
- Wiggle your shoulders.
- Feet, knees, toes, elbows, hands, fingers, head, hair.
- Wiggle your tongue, without sound. Wiggle your tongue, with sound. Note: I have helped several students with some level of selective mutism find their voice by encoouraging wiggling, then babbling, then using words.
- Spin around on your seat
- Spin around on your seat and shake your hands and babble.
- Keep your toes on the ground, and bounce up and down with your heals. Note: this helps students engage their whole body movement and use executive control.
- Hop up and down and make sure you land on your mat. Note: this helps students engage their whole body movement and continue to use executive control.
- Bug on his back. Students lay on their back and thrash around. This is good for high intensity movement and is also safe.