Kiddie Kardio

Kiddie Kardio is probably one of my favorite parts of the week. For 30 minutes every Thursday, I get to dance with toddlers and preschoolers. Some days, the kids just kind of stand there and stare at me, but there are days when those little ones will dance with wild abandon and it is hilarious. Most of the songs we use are from the Fresh Beat Band and the Imagination Movers(because they don't make me want to shove pencils through my eyeballs like some children's musicians).

During Kiddie Kardio, not only do we exercise through dancing, we also work on life skills like cleaning up our toys and waiting our turn. Each song where the kids get a handheld object (scarves, shaker eggs, lummi sticks, bean bags or hand bells) the kids have to come get them (learning to wait their turn) and put them back in the proper bins (cleaning up).

Our typical routine:

D.J. Get the Party Started (scarves)
Spin Around
Dance with Me
Here we Go (lummi sticks)
Tap it Out (lummi sticks)
A Friend Like You (shaker eggs)
Freeze Dance
Wiggle Song (Dragon Tales)
Mover Music (Imagination Movers)
Jump Up (Imagination Movers)
Zip-a-Dee-Do-Dah (Aly and AJ) (Parachute time)
We're Unstoppable (parachute time)

Parachute time may be the best thing about Kiddie Kardio. During Aly and AJ song, the parents and I work the parachute and the kids dance underneath it as it goes up and down. The happy squeals of the kids is infectious. The kids love the parachute, the parents and I love the cool breeze that comes from moving it. The second parachute song We're Unstoppable by the Fresh Beat Band is the invitation for the kids to handle the parachute if they want . If the kids are the ones holding the parachute, I kneel down to their height to help out. The parachute tends to move quicker and not as high as when the adults do it, but the kids love it just the same.

Kiddie Kardio is a 30 minute class for ages 2-5 held every Thursday during our Story Time Sessions.


With Love from Library Land,
Amber