"Silent Ball" is a game students in my school like to play during indoor recess. According to Wikipedia, it was originally created by an educator from Illinois for a forth grade classroom. In our school, students sit on top of their desks, and silently throw the ball from player to player. The player is out if they: talk drop the ball after catching it miss a reasonable trow throw the ball too hard Today, my students experienced a different way to play silent ball. As they were leaving, one of the third graders exclaimed: "This was the most intense silent ball game ever!" A little background. We were looking forward to celebrating our accomplishments by having extra recess outside, however the weather had different plans: half of the US turned into the frozen tundra, and outside was not an option. My students requested to play silent ball in the music room. Well, since we had access to speakers, I thought, why not play it while listening to the first
Life is unpredictable...unless you are a teacher. In my case, I can't be sick on Wednesdays and Thursdays because of after school programs, or on cycle days 1 and 2 because of Choir. I especially never want to be sick right before or during the concert week, and definitely not in the first week of school. But life is unpredictable. In the beginning of the year, sub plans are especially tricky. Here's an activity that is meaningful, requires little set-up, is easy to communicate to a substitute, and is realistic for a substitute without music skills. Have a healthy school year, everyone!