As a child, I was confident in my body - I loved to move, act and play. But ask me to speak in front of a group, and I would shrink. Now, as a Speech Bubbles practitioner, I see versions of my younger self all the time.

One boy, often labelled ‘distracted’, became intensely focused when asked to create physical gestures to show different types of weather. Children who freeze when asked to retell a story aloud often shine when acting it out - improvising boldly, leading their peers and expressing ideas their words can’t yet carry. A child unable to answer, “How does the character feel?” might instead curl inwards, shoulders hunched, back turned, conveying more emotion than any sentence could.

These are the movers: children who think, communicate and lead through their bodies. Yet in many classrooms, their strengths go unseen, not because they lack ideas or intelligence, but because they don’t fit neatly into a talk-heavy model of learning.

Movement is not the warm-up it’s the message.

Role play, physical storytelling, call-and-response and action rhymes are not just engaging extras, they’re essential tools for children whose primary language is movement. These approaches offer rhythm, structure and safety to learners who struggle with verbal fluency but thrive in embodied expression.

We know this intuitively. But are we acting on it?

Do we use our bodies confidently when we teach?
Do we model physical expression as a valid form of communication?
Do we offer leadership to movement-oriented children?
Or are we still prioritising those who speak quickly and clearly?

What we risk: who gets left behind

When we overvalue verbal speed, we risk overlooking the deep thinkers, rhythm-keepers and natural leaders who speak through gesture, action and shared physical experience. Movement-oriented activities create opportunities for children to explore, express and connect in ways that cannot always be captured through spoken words.

Yet, the hesitation of educators to embrace these forms of communication often reflects broader systemic issues - training, confidence, and the undervaluing of physical expression as a legitimate educational tool. In CPD sessions I’ve delivered, I’ve seen reluctance not rooted in resistance, but uncertainty. When educators lack confidence in their own physical expression, they’re less likely to create space for embodied learning in the classroom. This hesitation creates a communication gap between teacher and student and with it, missed opportunities for deeper connections and meaningful learning.

A call to action: teach with your whole self

Let’s invite more body-based storytelling into our classrooms. Let children lead warm-ups and transitions. Use gestures to explain routines or explore characters. Notice who lights up when movement is part of the lesson and give them chances to lead, to be seen and to be noticed.

Think of the child who stays focused in a clapping rhythm game but drifts during silent reading. The one who sequences best by acting out steps. The student who struggles to write but can retell a story through posture, pace and space. This is about expanding our understanding of communication, inclusion and what it means to know. They’re reminders that intelligence doesn’t always speak in full sentences.

Movement is a form of language. When we embrace it, we create more inclusive, dynamic and joyful learning environments.

Let’s celebrate the child who knows more than they can say.
Let’s listen not just with our ears, but with our eyes, bodies and hearts.

Movement for Teachers

Before we can confidently invite movement from our students, we often need to reconnect with it ourselves. Movement isn’t about performance, it’s about presence, connection and expression. This simple exercise offers a safe, non-judgmental way to explore how movement can hold meaning, and how emotion, narrative and learning can begin in the body. It builds awareness, expressiveness and creative courage.

Tune In

Stand or sit comfortably. Close your eyes if you like.
Gently scan your body without judgment. Where do you feel tension? Stillness? Energy?
Breathe into one of those places.
Now, begin to move just one part of your body - maybe your fingers, shoulders, or neck.
Let it be small and natural. Let it grow. Let it shrink.

You’re not performing, you’re noticing.

Ask yourself: How does this movement feel? Does it shift your energy, your focus, or your breath?

Dance Your Name

Choose a body part to lead with - your elbow, hip, knee, or head for example.
Use it to draw your name in the air, as if tracing it on a giant invisible wall.

If space allows travel as you move. Let the drawing carry you to a different part of the room. Try it big, exaggerated and bold. Involve your whole body. Don’t just spell your name, embody it! Do it again, but even bigger!

Need inspiration? Choose a quality like heavy, light, joyful, sharp, or messy. Let that word shape the style of your name-dance. Try leading with different body parts, don’t forget to breathe and notice how you feel. If you decide to do this with your students, which I highly recommend, don’t forget to model it. They’ll love seeing you try it, and it gives them permission to be bold, too.

Why it matters

This activity invites you to explore movement without choreography or pressure. It reconnects you with metaphor, emotion and physical presence - the same tools children instinctively use to make sense of their world. Long before they can explain what they feel or know, they show it through their bodies. Movement is one of their first languages, and when we reconnect with it ourselves, we become more attuned to the many ways children express understanding.

Pass the Move is a whole-body warm-up and inclusive game that centres movement as communication. It works because it requires no words. It’s accessible to everyone, regardless of ability or confidence. It gives non-verbal communicators and movers a chance to lead, while also building classroom focus, rhythm, turn-taking and empathy.

How to play:
Stand in a circle. The teacher or child begins by making a simple movement - a gesture, pose, or action (e.g., a clap, spin, stretch, hop, or wiggling fingers). The movement is then passed around the circle, one person at a time, like a silent ripple.

It’s not just about copying, although that can support less confident movers. What matters is feeling the shared rhythm and presence of the group. Once it returns to the leader, the next person creates a new move and the passing begins again.

Variations to try:

Add focus by setting a rhythm with clapping or background music.
Slow it down to emphasise control and presence (e.g., move like you're underwater or in slow motion).
Explore character: Pass a movement that shows how someone might walk or feel if they’re proud, tired, or bossy.
Build a story: Connect each movement into a sequence - the journey of a leaf, a paper aeroplane, or miming the challenge of passing around a heavy object.

You don’t need to be a movement or drama expert to bring this into your classroom. Activities like Pass the Move are simple, inclusive and easily adapted - whether used as a calming brain break, a focus tool, or a creative learning activity. They support key elements of the curriculum from sequencing and storytelling in English, to exploring pattern and shape in Maths, to understanding environments in Science and Geography. These games build focus, rhythm, cooperation and confidence, all through playful, physical learning.

The child who knows more than they can say: Celebrating the movers, not just the talkers. by Shermaine Slocombe