A series of 5 detailed lesson plans suitable for key stage one, that take inspiration and ideas from Mick Inkpen’s lovely story. Each lesson allows the children to create their own movement ideas so the teacher is free to guide, observe, describe and enjoy. The lessons are themed around the story & follow the narrative, they are ~ Lesson 1 - Penguin Small watched his friends plop into the ocean & swim away Lesson 2 - The polar bears were in a terrible mood Lesson 3 - The island was a wonderful place Lesson 4 - All night long the storm blew Lesson 5 - I can fly! I can fly!

Suitable for y2 and above, these lesson plans use the shapes that candles are often in as well as melting & setting. The lessons are creative and allow the children to devise their own movement material (rather than learning any step pattern) as a solo and in groups. The lessons come with suggestions for suitable music & could complement themes such as Festival of Light, Changing States, 3D Shapes or Light & Dark. I have assumed that lessons run for approximately 45 minutes, so you may well find that you have more than 2 lessons here if you hall time is less or that your children have little prior experience of dance.

Suitable for upper KS1 or lower KS2 this dance lesson uses the London Underground map as a stimulus to get the children travelling & stopping, passing through each other, following, connecting and separating. A highly creative lesson that will have the children busy and stimulate their imagination. Includes a suggestion for suitable music.

3 Dance lessons suitable for upper KS1 or lower KS2 based on the Kenneth Greene novel The Wind in the Willows. Each lesson is creative & simply requires the teacher to ask the children questions to inspire them to move - all of which are laid out in a simple step-by-step format. The first lesson uses the idea of the river, it’s bank & the plant life often found in such settings. The second lesson uses Mole’s spring clean as a starting point, this is developed into partner work as we introduce Ratty & their journey down the river. Finally we meet Toad in the episode with this motor car & travelling haphazardly along the country lanes. Music is suggested for each lesson which is easily accessed via the internet, but feel free to add your own! The lessons are designed to keep the children moving throughout the lesson & to develop their own ideas.

A key stage one resource where the 4 lessons encourage the children to explore and develop their own movement ideas (you don’t have to dance a step - unless you want to!) Each lesson comes in a step by step format with notes and prompts for you to ensure the children are developing their skills - and each lesson also comes with a recommended piece of music that is easily accessed via the internet. Lesson One includes Autumn leaves falling & bonfires with curling smoke. Lesson Two uses the angular shapes & sudden actions of Jack Frost. Lesson Three is the swirling patterns of snow, gusting and settling. Lesson Four looks at travelling through the snow & links with arctic explorers such as Scott of the Antarctic. Each section of the lesson has a clear aim, these might involve physical skills such as balance or control; performance skills such as projection or focus; teamworking skills such as cooperation or giving feedback; or choreographic skills such as mirroring or strucutring their work.

Four creative dance lessons covering the key steps in the process of chocolate making. Lesson 1 covers the pods growing on the trees & how they are harvested and fermented. Lesson 2 looks at drying, transporting & roasting. Lesson 3 looks at the winnowing process Lesson 4 covers grinding, mixing & refining the chocolate. Each lesson gives the children endless opportunities to decide how they will respond to the tasks which makes the lessons very inclusive of different abilities and levels of experience, whilst requiring the teacher to simply set the tasks (verbally) & give feedback. There are opportunities for team working and for groups to observe and give feedback. These lessons are very much written with the non specialist in mind, they are in a clear step-by-step format with hints along the way, they also include a suggestion for music that will suit, but please feel free to add your own choice.

This resource uses themes and ideas linked directly to David Walliams wonderful novel ‘Gangsta Granny’. Each lesson comes in a clear, easy to follow format where the children respond to tasks (rather than learn patterns of steps) that make the work creative, inclusive and easy for the non-specialist teacher to deliver successfully. The links to the text are clearly identified, thus consolidating their understanding of techniques used in literacy lessons. There are also hints and tips along the way to assist classroom management, and the skills for each section are shown in a side column - not forgetting a music suggestion for each lesson (with a direct link). There are 16 lessons in total - these are for you to select from (you don’t need to complete all of them!), or if you were thinking of putting on a whole school performance you might split the sections between a number of classes.

Aimed at EYFS children. A simple rhyme covering travelling in a car, on a bike, on a train or in a plane. Each comes with an obvious associtated action, such as miming using a steering wheel for driving - but this is complemented with a different aspect, in ‘cars’ levels are incorporated. The rhyme can be used as a stand alone activity or ‘filler’; but with each of the 4 verses there are notes on how the actions can be explored and developed. This will suit a wide range of instrumental tracks such as ‘Walking With Elephants’ by Ten Walls; ‘Belfast’ by Orbital; ‘The Baby Elephant Walk’ by Henri Mancini; ‘Axel F’ by Harold Faltermyer.

Three easy to follow dance lessons written with the non-specialist in mind. Each lesson plan comes in a simple step by step format that keeps the children very active & encourages them to use their imagination & creativity throughout but requires the teacher to simply ask questions & set tasks. The lessons can be delivered in any order & they cover ‘The London Underground’; ‘The River Thames’ and ‘Big Ben’. Each lesson comes with extra ideas that can be used if there is time in the lessons, alternatively the lesson could be repeated & these extra tasks could be used to progress the theme. The lessons come with suggestions for suitable music - these are easily accessed through the internet & will complement the movement ideas & style.

10 dance lessons based on the lovely, lovely ‘Ice Monster’ by David Walliams. The lessons are written in a clear step by step format to allow the teacher to simply ask questions to prompt ideas and actions from the children. The plans come with a guide to the skills for each section of the lesson and a link to suitable music. Hints & tips are included to assist you in delivering a successful lesson. Whilst there are 10 lessons, you do not need to complete every one… they follow the narrative so you can easily jump to the lesson that complements the work you are covering. The lessons are very active, encourage group working & problem solving and have opportunites for the children to watch and feedback on the work of others.

Four creative dance lessons suitable for upper ks1 or lower ks2 based on Jill Tomlinson’s story ‘The Owl Who Was Afraid of the Dark’ . The lessons focus on Fireworks, Campfires, Stars and The Black Cat These lessons have been written with covid 19 restrictions in mind & whilst still allowing the children to work together they do not require physical contact, limit travelling around the space and the activity level is moderate & sustained rather than high impact. Each lesson follows a simple step by step format where the teacher is simply required to ask questions to stimulate movement ideas in the children; there are hints & tips along the way to guide the teacher how long each task might last & what they can do to further support learning. Further to this the skills that each section of the lesson focus upon are noted in a column on the right. Each lesson has a suggestion of a piece of music that would suit - there is also a link to iTunes - but the music should be easily accessible on other platforms such as YouTube or Spotify. The lessons can be performed in any order & you do not need to cover all of them.

4 dance lesson plans covering the themes of The Ancient Greeks; The English Civil War, The Magna Carta & The Houses of Parliament. Each plan enables the teacher to deliver the lesson simply by asking questions & setting creative tasks for the students - this encourages imaginative responses, high levels of engagement, opportunities for students to work together, share ideas, analyse and evaluate. The lessons are written in a clear formula & include hints & tips along the way as well as the key skill of each section being identified in the right hand column. This method of working is very inclusive of children with different physical abilities and levels of experience.

6 dance lesson plans covering the themes of The Spanish Armada, Slavery, Greenwich Meantime, The Lunatic Line, Spices & The Spice Trade. Each plan enables the teacher to deliver the lesson simply by asking questions & setting creative tasks for the students - this encourages imaginative responses, high levels of engagement, opportunities for students to work together, share ideas, analyse and evaluate. The lessons are written in a clear formula & include hints & tips along the way as well as the key skill of each section being identified in the right hand column. This method of working is very inclusive of children with different physical abilities and levels of experience & an I-Tunes link for suitable music is included - however, this would also be available on other platforms such as Spotify or YouTube.

6 dance lesson plans covering themes & ideas from “The Lorax” by Dr Seuss. These cover sections of the story Way back in the days But those trees! Those trees! The Super-Axe Hacker The loved living here. But I can’t let them stay. Let me say a few words about the Gluppity-Glupp The very last Truffula Tree of them all. All of which link closely to their understanding of the impact man has upon the environment. Each plan enables the teacher to deliver the lesson simply by asking questions & setting creative tasks for the students - this encourages imaginative responses, high levels of engagement, opportunities for students to work together, share ideas, analyse and evaluate. The lessons are written in a clear formula & include hints & tips along the way as well as the key skill of each section being identified in the right hand column. This method of working is very inclusive of children with different physical abilities and levels of experience - it also includes an i-Tunes link for suitable music - the tracks suggested would also be available on other platforms such as Spotify or YouTube.