Anyone who knows me, knows that I am bit on the reserved side. I never had aspirations of seeing my name on a marquis or being up on a stage, singing and dancing my heart out. That being said, I’ll get out of my comfort zone if it benefits my students. As I’ve looked for ways to support my students, especially English Language Learners, songs and movement have come up a few times.
This is how I found myself singing and dancing with my 6th graders last week. I borrowed “The Number Line Dance” from Alex Kajitani, an educator in San Diego (I found his lesson on Integers on the Teaching Channel). Although, they pretended like they weren’t that into it, I could tell my students enjoyed this activity. It also helped students remember how to solve problems with integers. Many times throughout work time, I heard students softly singing the tune to help them remember which direction to go on the number line. I’m looking forward to more opportunities to bring music and movement into the classroom. Here are the lyrics and movements for the Number Line Dance if you are interested.
Part of the Process 