Praise to the Man: Follow the poster Body Rhythm

"Here's the pattern!"  Point to the poster.  

(Ask a teacher to hold the posters as you demonstrate the body rhythm pattern for the children. He or she will have to change them as you come to the end of each phrase.)  

Sing the song and demonstrate the pattern.

Show poster #1 again and ask the children, "What movement do the black dots represent?" (pop of the hand)

"What movement do the upward arrows represent?" (arm motion)

Sing the song and ask the children to do the pattern with you for the first poster.  

Ask the children "Can your hands follow my hands when we do the whole pattern as I sing?"

Sing the song again, doing the pattern on the posters.

Ask the children, "Why are some of the dots low and some of the dots high?" Receive their answers (usually louder or softer, or higher or lower).

"Let's check it out to see if that is right.

"Sing the song again and do all of the pattern. 

Extenders:  

Ask the children what words go with the dots on poster #1 and #2.  Receive their answers.  

Ask them to sing only the words to the song that go with the black dots.

 Do the same with posters #3 and #4.  (You can actually do it with each poster depending on the attention span of the children.  Short and sweet is better than drawing out the activity.)

The children are moving to the beat and words of the song in a way that mirrors the ups and downs of the melody.  They get the feel of the song into their body. They understand the energy of the song because of the energy it took in their body to do the pattern with the song.  And it is fun!

Here are the posters:

Praise to the man who communed with Jehovah 

Jesus annointed that prophet and seer 

Blessed to open the last dispensation 

Kings shall extol him and nations revere 

Hail to the prophet, Ascended to heaven 

Traitors and tyrants (Now) fight him in vain....

Mingling with Gods he can plan for his brethren

Death cannot conquer the hero again.

(Notice that 1, 3, and 8 are the same posters.  Notice that 4 and 9 are the same as each other.) 

HERE is a video of the actions that go with the posters.