Showing posts with label math. Show all posts
Showing posts with label math. Show all posts

Aug 18, 2018

All About Me: Eye Chart




"We are all special" is a message we want to send to young children. As the new preschool year begins or anytime throughout an Early Childhood Education curriculum, discussing what makes us unique and, yet the same, is a wonderful idea. Typically, we begin a Preschool year with an All About Me theme, and charting eye colors can be included into this topic.



Charting is an age appropriate math activity and there are many choices. Try:

Hair color: 










Where we live: 




Further Reading Suggestions:

Pet Preschool Lesson Plan 

Songs for All About Me Theme

All About Me Book 

Apr 5, 2014

10 Preschool Activities for Matching Easter Eggs

  

The Felt Board: Matching Design and Colors.






As Easter is around the corner, creating activities for young children whether for home or an early childhood setting does not have to be complicated. These matching felt eggs can be used on a flannel board or any piece of felt for children to enjoy. Matching allows young children to recognize colors and design. An option for this activity is to make different sizes and then provide opportunities for children to label or find the egg according to the request, for instance, "find me the biggest blue egg or find me the smallest green egg".





Matching sizes


Make Easter eggs, with felt or paper, of different sizes and then provide opportunities for children to match the sizes. In addition, the educator can help label by asking each child a question, such as  "find me the biggest blue egg or find me the smallest green egg".


Matching Plastic Easter Eggs: Color Recognition



http://www.makeandtakes.com/on-a-hunt-for-mixed-up-eggs
From Make andTakes Blog



From Teach Preschool

http://pinkandgreenmama.blogspot.ca/2012/03/colorful-egg-game.html




 Developing Math Skills


http://room-mom101.blogspot.ca/2010/03/easter-egg-matching-activity.html?m=1



                                Numbered Easter Eggs with pom poms for preschool

Letter Recognition

Easter Egg Letter Match

Matching Sounds





Matching Game


Memory Match
From Parents.com

        Thank you to all the amazing bloggers and pinners who provided ideas!


Online Workshops in Early Childhood Education

Sep 24, 2013

Preschool Fall Leaf Activities: Developing Math Skills




Young children love to go for nature walks and collect autumn treasures. This collection from the outside can then be brought inside for some fun indoor activities. The following article provides some suggestions on how to use leaves (nuts and other fall finds) in an early childhood curriculum to encourage the development of math skills in young children.


Sorting Autumn Leaves

The best way to start this activity in a preschool or daycare setting is to go for a nature walk with the group of children and allow them to collect the leaves. If this is not possible, then a collection of real leaves, or even paper or silk leaves, can be used. In small groups or in a large circle, the teacher can ask the children how these leaves can be sorted into groups. She/he can ask questions such as:

  • How could we put these leaves into groups?"
  • What makes these leaves the same and what makes these leaves different?"
  • What colors do we see?
  • Are some leaves bigger or smaller?
  • I wonder how many leaves we have all together?
  • I wonder which group of leaves is the biggest?


Simply stating these questions allows children to think about size, shape and color differences and begins the steps towards basic math concepts such as categorizing.

Depending on the age of the young children, they will need more or less guidance in their sorting choices. Once the groups have been decided upon, then the categories can be counted. For instance, if the children decided to sort the leaves by color, then all the red leaves will be counted and so on. Perhaps, the children will decide to sort the leaves by design or size. This decision can be left to the children or given by the teacher. After the small groups of leaves have been counted then a graph can be drawn on a paper by the teacher and this illustration posted in the room.


Felt Leaves on a Flannel Board




Another way of teaching children about sorting leaves is to use felt leaves on a flannel board. Each child can be given a leaf to bring to the board to place into the appropriate category or row at circle time. Afterwards, the children can then be asked to come back to the flannel board to remove a leaf according to the teacher's request, such as "please hand me the biggest red leaf on the board". This latter activity works well as a transition out of circle time. When the leaves are coming onto the board, the teacher can remind the children of the words used for sorting size: big, bigger and biggest as well as small, smaller and smallest. A further step is to ask the children to repeat these words to encourage language development.


Sensory Table for Fall Collections

Placing fall collections into a sensory table provides children a hands-on activity with the autumn leaves, nuts, pinecones and so forth. By placing containers with small compartments, such as muffin tins or ice cube trays, the children are provided opportunities to sort and collect. Finding opportunities in this free time activity to ask open ended questions further develops math skills in young children. Asking a child to count how many nuts they have found, for example, fosters math skills.


Fall Themed Sensory Table in Preschool


Math opportunities are abundant in an early childhood setting during all seasons through planned activities which encourage the development of basic math skills.



Jul 20, 2012

Math Activity with a Pet Theme


Math Activity with a Pet Theme



At circle time, a great way to teach math concepts and to learn about all the pets collectively owned by the children and their families is to make a pet graph. Before this activity, prepare a graph onto a large sheet of paper with pictures at the top (or bottom) of commonly owned pets, such as a dog, a cat, a bird, a fish, and a hamster.

These animals will make the individual vertical rows. A few blank rows should also be included for other pets that are given. Then take a tally of pets. Each child will say what kind of pets they have at home and as the answers are provided, the teacher will mark off a block. After counting each row to encourage math development, questions can be asked:

  • Which row is the highest?
  • Which row is the lowest?
  • What pet do we have the most ?
  • What pet do we have the least?
  • Can you guess how many blocks are in this row?

  Courtesy of beaconlearning.com

This graphing exercise, which is great to post in the room for families to view, can be used for a variety of themes and  items. Here are just some suggestions: 

  1. Flower counting with a spring walk
  2. Stuffed animals on a teddybear day
  3. Shapes
  4. Fall leaves