Dance Like a Kangaroo

the "Kangaroo" singing dances are in intuitive formations such as follow-the-leader, circles, two lines of dancers facing each other, and a corroboree in a semi-circle. The text of the song can be interpreted in dance with no further instruction, but a spoken dance description is provided with a second backing version which allows children or teacher to create their own variations on the games. The CD appeals to children from preschool to primary age and provides many ideas for classroom or home music and movement activities. The dance games can be played with or without adult participation. Instruments include trumpet, violin, whistles, tiple, guitar, digeridoo, electric piano, drum machine, darrabukka, contrabass resonator bars, xylophones, washboard, wooden spoons & other tuned and non tunes percussion. Teacher's Review - Jenny Dixon, Solway Primary School, Victoria About 12 years ago a tape landed on my desk, from persons unknown, with a suggestion that I should try it. It was called, "Dance like A Kangaroo". Once used, it became my 'faithful companion' and is always in my bag ready to fill a gap in the day where the class could sing and dance. The original copy was actually wearing thin and has had some close calls with breakages and panic stricken mends so I was ecstatic to find that it was available on a CD. Perhaps slightly stronger than the original tape and certainly newer! "Dance like A Kangaroo" - a fantastic introduction to dancing for lower primary students. I can simply start at the beginning and let the tape roll through. Even grade six students have requested 'Itty, Bitty, Baby' (to my stunned surprise) more than once and then they actually dance and sing with it! I have used 'Travelling Around Australia' in conjunction with the story of 'Possum Magic' and learning about the states and capital cities. 'Twist Yourself Up' is another favourite of the younger classes as they try to reach and hold various parts of the body and keep their balance. I don't quite know who laughs more, the teacher at the twisted shapes and students falling over or the students laughing at their teacher trying, in vain, to reach long distant toes and back whilst holding onto the elbow, the nose, the left hip the … and often falling over! 'Walking to the Left' gives all the students an easy introduction to basic folk dance movements and beats. After this they find it quite easy to understand how folk dances can be built using set actions. They can gradually build their own movements into the music to form their own folk dances based on the simple movements from 'Dance like A Kangaroo'. I have used the CD from Prep to Grade 6 over the last 12 years and I still enjoy listening, dancing and singing with it and I have not found a class yet who do not enjoy dancing and singing with it as well. So simple and so much fun! ! I think that my most favourite track is the title track, 'Dance Just like A Kangaroo'. For the Prep to 2 area the music just makes all the students get up to dance and sing. I think that I have used this tape every year whether teaching a class or teaching as a music specialist and I can always rely on it being an instant success, even if the students used it the year before and the year before and … I don't think that I have ever found such a useful and universal CD that can provide so much entertainment from Prep to Grade 6.