Roi Et - Clowning with the kids - Day 8 and 9

The children are doing extremely well, the workshop is going extremely well! How great is that. All the kids so engaged and fully participating and playing. We start the class today and the kids have already arranged themselves in a circle, ready to go.

Funny, though, sometimes (some days) they're totally into it, and sometimes not. Today, with the older group, we do funny walks moving in silly ways, and they, however, were not having it. Normally, they're totally game.

We do mirror game: impromptu, as part of music and dancing decided to incorporate mirroring exercise, and had the kids do it with each other, in two's. Worked quite well! They understood the game without any verbal instruction and had fun with it. (Mirroring exercise= face each other and follow each other's movement, one lead and the other follow, but slowly as if moving simultaneously and you can't tell who the leader is.)

Duun dtalok! Funny walk. Explore further. And put together with juggling or acrobatics, for example a funny character doing a juggling routine. Liz and I demonstrate different walks contrasted to each other, for example: Liz moving hunched over in a slow rhythm with big arm and leg movement; then, in contrast, I do something where I'm straight and tall with small quick and jerky movements. Together we make a funny couple. The kids do it, and some really go for it. Playing with being funny. What's funny, what's making people laugh, what's fun and funny to do? Good! Then we do funny walk with a trip into a roll on the mat, putting together a little sequence.

We also introduce partner acrobatics. One person lying on ground with feet up and the other "flying" on the feet (lying horizontal across with hips on bottom person's feet). I've done this flying-on-belly position since I was a little kid, a classic one, but they seem to never have seen it before. Lots of ooh's and aah's. And we do another position with one person standing on the other's knees (both standing vertical and holding each other's arms and leaning back from each other, balancing). Everyone wants to go, especially (again) in the 2nd group -- girls calling my name and saying me me me! First group not as eager. I think they still want to try, but just more shy.

October 22 and 23