P201 Menu

Exploratories

Student Marching Column


Overview

Students will form a marching line that will "bend" as it advances down the hall.


Detailed Explanation


Needed:

A floor space gridded by floor tiles or patterned tiles.
Meter sticks to represent the wave front
Masking tape
Teacher and Students


Activity:

Place a strip of masking tape on the floor so that is diagonally crosses the width of the area available, as shown in the diagram.
Line up the students, asking them to hold meter sticks waist high and parallel to the floor (2 - 3 students per meter stick). Line up as many students as fit across the space available.

Instruct students to take one step (in unison) at each clap of your hands. Before students reach the masking tape, the step size should be 2 blocks. As soon as students cross the masking take, their step size must decrease to 1 block. Allow enough claps/steps so that approximately half of the students cross the masking tape. Direct the students to look at how the meter sticks have bent from a straight line formation to a bent line.