Snug
THE RESTFUL MOVES
Snug the Snail Loves the Restful Moves
Snug is a gentle little snail with a cosy swirly shell, and Snug does NOT rush. Snug has two favourite moves, and they are the calm, quiet, restful ones.
“FREEZE,” whispers Snug, and he goes perfectly, completely still, tucked and calm. “And CRAWL,” he says softly, inching along, slow and low, taking his sweet time.
“Freeze means hold still,” Snug says gently. “Crawl means slow and low. These are the RESTFUL moves. After all that big hopping and spinning - ooh! - it’s so nice to go calm and slow and catch your breath.”
A little friend tries the calm moves. She FREEZES - holding VERY still, like a statue, not even a wiggle. Then she CRAWLS - slow and low, hands and knees, gentle as a snail. And she feels her fast breathing go slow, and calm, and easy.
“Isn’t that nice?” says Snug, with a slow, cosy smile. “The big moves are exciting. But the restful moves are just as important. They give your body a little breather. Freeze and crawl - calm and slow.”
Snug crawls a tiny bit closer, in no hurry at all. “A good course needs BOTH,” he says. “Some big, some restful. That way nobody gets too tired.”
That is Snug’s calm, cosy idea.
Freeze and hold still, or crawl slow and low - those are the restful moves that give you a breather.
A grown-up can play too! Do the calm moves together. FREEZE - hold VERY still, like statues. Then CRAWL - slow and low, gentle as snails. Feel your breath go slow and easy. Ahh. After big moves, restful moves feel wonderful.
When Snug finally settles into his cosy shell, calm and slow and content, he feels the soft, easy gladness of a snail who took his time. “Freeze and crawl,” he hums sleepily. “The restful moves. Just right after all that bouncing.”
Freeze still, crawl slow. Restful moves. That’s Snug.
Reading together with a grown-up? A card for the grown-up
For the grown-up: ask one question, then wait. When they answer, add one word to what they said. Tap the button when they have said something — that is one turn each, a circle. Nothing is recorded or kept.
Let them finish it
Say “Snug says: FREEZE and hold still, or CRAWL slow and low - those are …” and stop. Let them finish it.
Now wait. Count slowly to five in your head. Their answer is worth the quiet.
Circles together: 0
The HopTots ensemble
Snug is one of the friends in HopTots. Each friend shows you one idea by how they act; meet them all and you have the whole subject.
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Bounce
A course is moves in a row - Bounce the grasshopper, who does, move by move, the course you build: put a few moves in order - hop, then spin, then freeze - and that is a course to do together
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Boing
The big moves - Boing the bunny, who loves hop (up high) and spin (around): the big, exciting moves that use lots of energy
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Clover
Make it for your friend - Clover the fawn, who builds a FAIR course a little friend can really do: not too long, not all big moves in a row, a restful move in the middle (design for the player, not a show-off)