How to use this Page

A Weekly Column for the National Writing for Children Center from Grier Cooper

The holiday season has sprung up in full glory, winter is just around the corner, and in the middle of all the festive merrymaking it’s hard to believe that sometime, in the very near future, there will be cabin fever to contend with. Just as little girls are made of sugar and spice and everything nice, winter is often made of snow and ice, things not very nice, leading to a parental waking nightmare, where the family is stuck in the house and the kids are bouncing off the walls, looking for somewhere to expend their excess energy. It’s moments like these, when things get tough, that the tough proceed immediately to the stereo, crank up the tunes, and let the wild rumpus begin… the impromptu living room dance party, guaranteed to combat even the toughest cases of bad weather blues.

Just because it’s nasty outside does not mean that fun cannot be had inside. For most children under age eight, fun music inspires an immediate response: feel the beat, move your feet. Better yet, this is an activity that the whole family can enjoy. Parents spend a lot of time and energy trying to squeeze in a little time to get in a good workout when in reality, it can be had for free anytime… burn two hundred calories on thirty minutes, and you don’t even have to leave the house. Not that you could… even if you wanted to.

To make the activity fun for everyone, be sure to select music that everyone will enjoy, grownups included. Some foolproof musical selections include: old-time classics, such as anything by The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Kinks, or The Ramones, soundtracks from musicals like Singin’ In The Rain, High School Musical, Grease and Saturday Night Fever, or just hit “shuffle” on your MP3 player, and let the internal electronic dj genie take over. As long as the music has a good beat and makes you want to move your body, then it’s the right choice.

Try dancing with partners as well as individually. If there are several people dancing, try dancing together in a circle, or create a conga line. If you have carpets, pillows thrown randomly on the floor can add to the fun. Use them as steppingstones to jump from, or as an obstacle course to avoid. If you have hardwood floors, the pillows can be pretend puddles to jump over.

The living room dance party is your prescription for dealing with pent-up energy (yours and your children’s) and keeping everyone sane, healthy and fit. This New Year’s, make your number one resolution a dance revolution!