Music and movement activities for preschoolers and toddlers

Music and movement for a small child needs a clear floor, a piece of music, and ten minutes. A toddler or a preschooler learns about beat, speed, and loud and soft by moving to them. This page gives 15 activities, a classical piece for each, and a short plan to follow.

For older children, read classical music for kids to dance to.

What a child practices

• Beat: patting, marching, and rocking in time
• Fast and slow: changing speed with the music
• Loud and soft: big moves and small moves
• High and low: reaching up and crouching down
• Stop and go: starting and stopping on a signal

Fifteen activities

For toddlers (ages 1 to 3)

1. Lap bounce. Sit your child on your knees and bounce to the beat. Piece: Johann Strauss I, Radetzky March.
2. Rock and sway. Hold your child and rock from side to side. Piece: Brahms, Lullaby.
3. Pat the beat. Pat knees, tummy, or the floor in time. Let your child pat a pot with a wooden spoon. Piece: Tchaikovsky, March from The Nutcracker.
4. Scarf float. Throw a light scarf up and watch it fall. Move it slow and smooth. Piece: Saint-Saëns, Aquarium, from Carnival of the Animals.
5. Shake and stop. Shake a shaker while the music plays. Pause the music, and freeze. Piece: Leroy Anderson, The Syncopated Clock.
6. Up and down. Lift your child high on high notes and bring them low on low notes. Sing a slide from low to high as you lift.

For preschoolers (ages 3 to 5)

7. Animal walks. Stomp for an elephant and hop for a kangaroo. Pieces: Saint-Saëns, The Elephant and Kangaroos, from Carnival of the Animals.
8. Tiptoe and jump. Tiptoe through the quiet tune, and jump on the loud chord. Piece: Haydn, Surprise Symphony, second movement.
9. Slow to fast. Creep at the start. Speed up as the music does, and fall down at the end. Piece: Grieg, In the Hall of the Mountain King.
10. Buzz around. Fly around the room, and land when the music stops. Piece: Rimsky-Korsakov, Flight of the Bumblebee.
11. Wake up. Curl up small. Stretch and grow as the music grows. Piece: Grieg, Morning Mood.
12. Tiptoe dance. Dance on tiptoe with tiny steps. Piece: Tchaikovsky, Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy.
13. Sway in three. Hold hands and sway: one big step and two small ones. Piece: Tchaikovsky, Waltz of the Flowers.
14. Follow the leader. One child chooses a move. Everyone copies until the leader changes it. Any march works.
15. Statues. Dance while the music plays. Freeze in a shape when it stops. Call out a shape: tall, small, wide, or twisted.

Props that help

Prop	What it is good for	A swap from home
Light scarves	Slow music and smooth moves	A thin tea towel
Shakers	The beat, and stop and go	Rice in a small jar with a tight lid
Ribbon rings	Circles, zigzags, and big arm moves	A ribbon tied to a wooden spoon
Bean bags	Passing on the beat, and balance	A rolled pair of socks
A small blanket	Lifting, floating, and hiding as a group	A bed sheet
Rhythm sticks	Tapping the beat	Two wooden spoons

Safety: small items are a choking risk for children under three. Seal a homemade shaker so it cannot open, and stay with your child while they use scarves and ribbons.

A ten-minute plan

1. Hello song (1 minute). Sing the same short song each time.
2. Beat (2 minutes). Lap bounce or pat the beat.
3. Big moves (3 minutes). One fast or loud piece.
4. A prop (2 minutes). Scarves or shakers.
5. Calm down (2 minutes). Lie on the floor and listen to a slow piece. Try Saint-Saëns, The Swan.

Use the same plan for a week, so your child knows what comes next.

Songs with actions

Action songs teach the same skills. Each of these has moves built in:

• “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes”
• “If You’re Happy and You Know It”
• “Row, Row, Row Your Boat”
• “Ring Around the Rosie”
• “The Wheels on the Bus”

For circle games and arch games with songs, read singing games for kids.

If your child will not join in

• Do it yourself, and say nothing. A child may want to watch first.
• Offer a prop. A scarf gives shy hands a job.
• Try again at a different time of day.
• Let a stuffed toy do the dancing.

Classes

A weekly class adds a teacher and other children. Read early childhood music classes compared, Music Together vs Kindermusik, and Suzuki early childhood classes.

Two teaching methods are built on movement. Read Dalcroze eurhythmics explained and Orff Schulwerk explained.

More to play

• Classical music for toddlers: 8 short pieces
• Classical music for preschoolers
• Carnival of the Animals listening guide
• Music games for kids with no equipment