Lesson Key Facts

• Grade(s): 2
• Subject(s): Dance, English Language Arts
• Duration of lesson: 35 minutes
• Author(s): Jana Shumway

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Before the students enter the room, have colored scarves placed all around the classroom and a spotlight already turned on. Have a projector set up with the pictures from the book to show the children as you dance through the story.

Experience/Identify 

Have the students enter the room, find a scarf, wrap it around their shoulders, and sit down in the same spot quietly. Start right into the story by showing pictures from the book Rainbow Goblins on the projector screen.

Activity 1: Goblin Names

Play the song “Dakota Dawn” by Eric Chappelle.

Read Rainbow Goblins by Ul de Rico. Show the picture of the valley.

Teacher: Once upon a time there was a beautiful valley called the Valley of the Rainbows. This valley was afraid of goblins, but not just any goblins. This valley was afraid of Rainbow Goblins. Now, these Rainbow Goblins were named after their specific color. There was a red goblin.

Have all the children with a red scarf stand and dance; then, when given the cue, have the students dance over to one wall, set the scarves down, and go back to their spot to sit.

Repeat with blue, purple, yellow, orange, and green scarves.

Activity 2: Lasso Rainbows

Teacher: Now let me show you what the Rainbow Goblins did.

Have the children stand and follow along with you.

Teacher: They each took their lasso and circled it two times above their heads in the air. Once it wrapped around the rainbow, they would pull it down and eat the delicious color until their bellies were fat.

Circle your arm twice above your head, throw an imaginary rope toward the ceiling, pull hard with both arms on said rope, pretend to eat, and end with a very wide shape, holding an imaginary bulging belly.

Repeat two more times, eating a different color each time.

Activity 3: Journey 

As you move into this activity, read from the book about the journey.

Teacher: The yellow goblin was their leader, and he stood up and said, "Come on, comrades! Let’s go find rainbows in the Valley of the Rainbows."

Change the picture to the mountain with the rainbow.

Teacher: So off they went.

Change the picture on the projector to the tree serving as a bridge between rocks.

As you dance the following, push the students to really commit to the verbs that they are dancing and point out students who are doing an excellent job on the different verbs.

Teacher: Climb up the tall mountain.

  Tiptoe across the narrow fallen tree.

  Jump down off the rock.

  Roll down the grassy hill.

  Push through the tall grass.

  Squeeze between the forest trees.

  Run around the big lake.

  Jump over the boulder.

  Duck down and watch for the flying bird overhead.

Activity 4: Cave

Play the song “Mr. E” by Eric Chappelle.

Change the picture to the cave entrance.

Teacher: Hey! Here’s a cave. Let’s go inside.

Have the ceiling get lower and lower until the children are slithering on their stomachs. Then have the ceiling start to get taller and taller until the children are standing up again.

Walk into a big room filled with stalagmites and stalactites. Jump over the stalagmites and duck under the stalactites.

Leap over puddles.

Squeeze through narrow passageways.

Duck low as bats fly overhead.

Activity 5: Spread the Word

Play the song “Dancing Digits” by Eric Chappelle.

Change the picture to the moonlight in the trees.

Teacher: Meanwhile, the moon had noticed the goblins and thought it had better spread the word that they were coming.

Have all the students spread out and create a nature shape (like the moon, clouds, stars, trees, bushes, animals, flowers, and so on).

Teacher: Run to one child and say, The goblins are coming.

Freeze and have that child run to another child and say, "The goblins are coming." Then have that child freeze in a shape. Continue until all the children have received word. 

Activity 6: Roots

Play the song “Morning Fours” by Eric Chappelle.

Change the picture on the projector to the cave with roots.

Teacher: Now inside the cave, the goblins were making their plan of attack. But while they were talking, the sneaky roots were listening.

Have the children pretend to be roots, twisting and listening in time with the beats of the music. Twist two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight.

Teacher: Freeze and listen in a diagonal shape.

Repeat the twisting and end with different shapes: upside-down, backward, crooked, straight, sideways, front, and so on. 

Activity 7: Go to Sleep

Play the song “Little Bolero” by Eric Chappelle.

Change the picture to the moon shining on the lake.

Teacher: Suddenly, the goblins noticed the moon and knew it was time to go to sleep.

Have the children lie down and pretend to go to sleep.

Activity 8: Dream

Change the picture to the rainbow dream picture.

Teacher: Do you know what the goblins dreamed about? That’s right, rainbows! Let’s dance their dream.

Repeat the lasso dance from before: Circle your arm twice above your head, throw an imaginary rope toward the ceiling, pull hard with both arms on said rope, pretend to eat, and end with a very wide shape, holding an imaginary bulging belly. 

Repeat two more times, eating a different color each time.

Activity 9: Happy Dance

Play the song “Spootiskerry” by Eric Chappelle.

Change the picture to the thunder clouds/goblins dancing picture.

Teacher: In the morning, the goblins noticed storm clouds. Storm clouds bring rain, and rain brings rainbows. They could hardly wait; they were so excited that they danced for joy!

Have the children do a happy dance (leaping, running, exploding, and so on).

Activity 10: Ready to Attack

Play the song “Dakota Dawn” by Eric Chappelle.

Change the picture to the lightning picture.

Teacher: Quietly, the goblins snuck out of the cave and got ready for their attack. 

Tiptoe for a little while.

Teacher: Boys, follow this plan: Climb up the mountain, jump down, leap over three rivers, go behind a tree, and freeze. Go! 

Note: You will likely need to call out the plan as they do it to remind them.

Teacher: Girls, follow this plan: Run around the lake, push through the tall grass, jump over the big boulder, and freeze in a shape. Go! (Again, you will likely need to call out the plan as they do it to remind them.)

Activity 11: Attack

Change the picture on the projector to the goblins looking over the valley, waiting.

Have the children wait in their shapes for the command to lasso the rainbow down.

Change the picture to the lasso picture.

Teacher: Okay. Ready? Attack! Circle once, twice, throw! Wait—something’s wrong. There’s no rainbow. Let’s try again. Circle once, twice, throw.

Activity 12: Tangle/Drown

Play the song “All in One” by Eric Chappelle.

Change the picture to the goblins getting tangled.

Teacher: Just then, all their lassos fell down, and they got tangled in their own lassos. As they struggled, they got more and more tangled. 

Have the children pretend to be getting tangled, and then end tangled in a big knot.

Change the picture to the drowning picture.

Teacher: Just then, the rainbow juice poured out of the flowers. The goblins struggled as they tried to swim in their tangled-up lassos. 

Have the children try to move in their knot.

Teacher: It was all too much, and the goblins drowned.

Activity 13: Rainbow/Birds 

Play the song “Spootiskerry” by Eric Chappelle.

Change the picture on the projector to the rainbow lifting out of the flowers.

Teacher: Then the rainbow colors lifted up out of the flowers. 

Have the children slowly rise, then run to get their scarves.

Teacher: Then a beautiful rainbow formed. 

Have the children all clump together.

Change the picture to both of the birds flying pictures.

Teacher: Then suddenly, beautiful birds and butterflies flew out of the rainbow. 

Have the children separate and fly with their scarves.

Change the picture to the rainbow on the final page.

Teacher: And from then on, the rainbow decided it would never let its ends touch the earth, just in case more Rainbow Goblins appeared again in the future.

Connect/Analyze

Without saying a word, have the children gather and sit down in front of you. Pull out the book and start turning the pages, silently showing them the pictures.

Have the children identify the characters in the story. Have the children figure out what the problem in the story was and how it was resolved. Have the children figure out the beginning, middle, and end of the story and how they connected to each other.

• Notice how characters respond in a story.
• Discuss how the beginning, middle, and end contribute to a story.
• Utilize basic dance terminology in movement.
• Use artwork as inspiration for movement.

This lesson can be used to meet standards in many grades and subject areas. We will highlight one grade’s standards to give an example of application.

Grade 2 English Language Arts 

• Reading, Literature Standard 3: Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.
• Reading, Literature Standard 5: Describe the overall structure of a story, including describing how the beginning introduces the story and the ending concludes the action.

Grade 2 Dance 

• Standard 2.D.R.1: Use basic dance terminology to describe how movement suggests an idea.

• Rico, UI De.The Rainbow Goblins. New York, NY: Thames and Hudson, 2016.
• Projector
• Pictures of the book in a presentation format
• Spotlight
• Scarves in every color of the rainbow:
  • Red
  • Blue
  • Purple
  • Yellow
  • Orange
  • Green
• Music tracks from Music for Creative Dance:
  • "Dakota Dawn"
  • "Mr. E"
  • "Dancing Digits"
  • "Morning Fours"
  • "Little Bolero"
  • "Spootiskerry"
  • "Dakota Dawn"
  • "All in One"

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Image 1: Shutterstock (https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/children-dancing-modern-group-choreography-scarfs-220684471).

Image 2: The Rainbow Goblins, by Ul de Rico (https://www.amazon.com/Rainbow-Goblins-Ul-Rico/dp/0500277591/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=RDEBP55P6HY2GDGTA3C6).

Image 3: Shutterstock (https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/children-dancing-modern-group-choreography-scarfs-569097028).

Image 4: Shutterstock (https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/children-dancing-modern-group-choreography-scarfs-265164668).