Conversational Calaveras 5: Dem Bones (Dance & ARTivities)
Today we have the last part of our Conversational Calaveras. I bring you the Skeleton Dance by Super Simple Learning and some ARTivities to do after dancing skeleton-style.
The Skeleton Dance Lyrics and Actions
via Super Simple Learning
Key Gesture:
Skeleton dance – Lift your elbows up. Raise one hand.
Then lower your hand while raising the other.
♫ Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones. [Skeleton dance.]
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones. [Skeleton dance. Move to the right.]
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones. [Skeleton dance. Move to the left.]
Doin’ the skeleton dance. [Skeleton dance.]
The foot bone’s connected to the leg bone. [Point to your foot, then to your lower leg.]
The leg bone’s connected to the knee bone. [Point to your lower leg, then your knee.]
The knee bone’s connected to the thigh bone. [Point to your knee, then your thigh.]
Doin’ the skeleton dance.
The thigh bone’s connected to the hip bone. [Point to your thigh, then your hip.]
The hip bone’s connected to the backbone. [Point to your hip, then your back.]
The backbone’s connected to the neck bone. [Point to your back, then your neck.]
Doin’ the skeleton dance.
Shake your hands to the left.
Shake your hands to the right.
Put your hands in the air.
Put your hands out of sight. [Put your hands behind your back.]
Shake your hands to the left.
Shake your hands to the right.
Put your hands in the air.
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle,
wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle,
wiggle, wiggle…wiggle your knees. [Wiggle your whole body, moving your hands all the way down your body until they reach your knees.]
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones.
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones.
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones.
Doin’ the skeleton dance. ♫
Calavera y Esqueleto/ Skull & Skeleton
ARTivities
ARTivity 1- The SKELETON PUZZLE
Super Simple Learning offers games and lesson plans to go with their songs – here is a Skeleton puzzle to go with the Skeleton dance
Download for free on Super Simple Learning
SKELETON PUZZLE
Download for free on Super Simple Learning
My compressed version
of the Skeleton Puzzle/worksheet of Super Simple Learning
The Colored Worksheet- with polka borders
Optional: glue a copy of the song onto the back of coloured paper
Here I’m sharing print-ready SKELETON DANCE lyrics (4 copies/A4 sheet)
Pre-cut puzzle and put in individual bags
Color the pieces of the puzzle before gluing together
The mismatched colors of the pieces make quite a happy-looking skeleton!
Then you can glue them together on the coloured paper provided.
Here’s how I carried out my Skeleton Dance art class: (mixed group- ages 2 1/2 – 5)
Step 1. Intro – skeleton vocabulary (as mentioned in the song)
*I brought a flat plastic skeleton to help kids visualize the different bones; kids get to stick the name on/next to skeleton
- foot
- leg
- knee
- thigh
- hip
- backbone
- neck bone
- skull(additional)
- left, right (review)
Name that bone!
I brought a flat plastic skeleton to help kids visualize the different bones;
kids get to stick the name on/next to skeleton
Step 2. Do the Skeleton Dance– watch video on YouTube ; sing and follow the dance steps
Let’s do The SKELETON DANCE!
We had very little room but we still had loads of fun!
Step 3. Skeleton Dance Puzzle Art:
- Instructions & Demo of Puzzle
- Kids glued skeleton puzzle pieces together, unto coloured paper provided
- Using markers, kids coloured the puzzle
*If kids are all 5 years or older, I suggest they color the pieces of the puzzle first before gluing them together. This will make the colors more varied and dynamic, and the mismatch effect will be a wonderful sight.
COLOR & GLUE or GLUE & COLOR
it all depends on age group you’re teaching
For kids 5 yrs & older you can do the coloring before gluing.
However, I had a mixed group and gluing had to happen first; otherwise, it would have been a total disaster—
bones would have flown everywhere, hahaha
Here are the works of my students:
Here are the lovely & lively works from my Skeleton Dance art class
ARTivity 2- Calavera Fructífera/Fruitful Skull
-a digital collage
Make yourself a digital “Calavera Fructífera” or Fruitful Skull, to remind yourself that you should aim to keep life simple, vibrant and sweet (just like fruit)…and that a bit of sour things can happen but you’ll be surprised that like citrus, it still provides some ‘healthy goodness’ – a lesson to be learned, perhaps!
Step 1- Find a skull template to use (lots of free templates available on line), i used one from triedandtrueblog
Check out the really cool Dia de los Muertos kids’ crafting on triedandtrueblog
Step 2- Find an image of fresh fruit, and send to back of skull image
Step 3- Remove some white areas, but retain a few as shown in my example. Play around with your design.
“Did you know there’s a difference between being busy and being fruitful? Did you ever stop to think that just being busy – running around in circles all day but not accomplishing anything – is the same as wasting your time? It’s frustrating to expend so much energy and time and not have any fruit from your effort!”
-Joyce Meyer
Read more ‘fruitful quotes’ on brainyquote
So do…exercise those bones (The Skeleton Dance is a great way to get you started!), and aim for a fruitful life. By fruitful I mean living simply, with purpose and with gratitude in your heart…
DAILY DOSE OF ART 
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