Brynne and Emerson have been very adamant about having dance parties, frequently requesting music by putting their body language communication skills to use as they point to the iPad on the counter and their verbal communication skills once the educator asks “do you want to do some dancing?” as they respond by saying “more!” in acceptance. Brynne often express her excitement to commence the party by rocking her head back and forth with a big smile on her face, moving her body closer to the carpet area where we usually host said parties. While Emerson makes joyful vocalizations and hurries over to the carpet area clapping his hands all the way there. Once the action songs are turned on for us to listen to, Brynne gets right down to business with her dance moves, swaying her hips from side to side and putting her hands up by her side. Emerson listens attentively and together with Brynne, they work their language comprehension and interpretation skills in order to follow along with the actions in the song, referencing the educators if they were ever unsure and applying their imitation skills as the educators followed the actions alongside the infants. Some class favourites include ‘Rock a bye bear’, ‘Head, shoulders, knees and toes’, ‘Shake your sillies out’, and ‘The hokey pokey’. Both Brynne and Emerson are particularly proficient in the ‘Rock a bye bear’ song, using their memory and attention regulation to follow along to the actions of clapping, bowing, turning around, putting their hands in the air, and lastly, shushing with one finger on their lips. This activity encourages early language and literacy understanding and appreciation as the infants are presented with a variety of words and phrases through a method they enjoy quite thoroughly and ask for on a regular basis – action song dance parties!
