CATERPILLAR OVER THE MOUNTAIN Equipment: mat, bench
Concept: Cooperation
Objective: To crawl on hands and knees while holding the ankles of those in front of you and crawl over the mountain
Task: First the children work together either to construct a mountain or to move it into place. The mountain can consist of a bench, large play blocks, or anything else that appeals to them. Once the children have helped move the mountain they again work together to put the grass on top of the mountain. A mat draped over the mountain makes good grass. To form the caterpillar, the children line up on their hands and knees, and hold the ankles of the child in front of them. Four children can form one sixteen-legged caterpillar, which moves around the room and over the mountain. Caterpillars can link up with other caterpillars until one giant caterpillar is formed, which crawls over the mountain and slides down the other side. A whole-class caterpillar may need more than one mountain to crawl over. Caterpillars can also coil up or crawl into a cocoon.
