Quiet Time Activity: Shell Dropping Game

All the children sit in a circle with their eyes closed, not making any movement or sound for at least a minute. When a minute is up, the teacher then takes a handful of pebbles (or marbles) and drops them into a bowl, one by one. First very rhymically, slowly, -- then speeds up a little ... and slows down again. It is important to vary the rhythm of dropping the marbles so that the children really must focus on their counting. When all the items have been dropped, we then go around the circle and ask each child how many marbles are in the pot. This actually sounds a lot easier than it is! :-)