N is for numbers!

Our first day back after break went smoothly.  :-)  We ran out of time for some things since they both had a lot to chat about but conversations are important too so that is just fine. 

Today I planned to do familiar activities...typical of what I do after a break.  Just gets us back into the routine, etc.  Much of what we did today are activities I have posted about in the past so will refrain in repeating.  Here's a couple "new" activities we did that used familiar materials.

Number/Letter Sort w/ Playdough

 

First I worked with them to create long snakes to make the numerals 1 through 9.  They are coming right along with snake making.  :-)  Each child had a different color playdough so that allowed for a pattern to be created/reinforced.  Then I went through a selection of playdough letter/number stampers.  If it was a number they stamped the correct playdough number.  This was very much enjoyed.  :-)  If it was a letter, I stamped where it would go in the number words.  We repeated "a number we can count with; a letter we can read/spell with".  They really stayed engaged until right up to the end when all the numbers had been stamped but there were a few more letters.  So next time I'll make sure that I leave a number stamp until the end!  Ha!  There was a reach here because we had to put the numbers up high enough on the table so that there was enough space to work right in front of them...so next time...we'll do it on the floor.

Odd/Even Numbers Wok and Roll

            Excuse his reach...we did correct the situation.  :-D

 One can often add a concept to a game you already have.  Here I used our Wok and Roll game to add a task about odd and even numbers as well as incorporate a bit of fine motor.  I used stickers to label the vegetables with numbers.  We talked about the labeled odd/even bowls and on a whim I used M&M's as manipulatives to match up buddies to find out if the number was odd/even.  We didn't go through all the numbers...only about half.  It would have been very time consuming and I don't think they would have stayed interested much longer so I would rather stop them when their interest is high.  :-)

The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson

A "special" we did today that really had nothing to do with numbers but I wanted them to have the opportunity...they love this book and so when I saw it on our library's New DVD shelf I picked it up.  We did talk about characters and how many there were in the book vs. in the movie.  We also clapped out each of the characters names.  Slipping things in like that is always beneficial! 

           Number Search       Sound & Number Cans    

Number Hokey Pokey

S is for Snowman! Day 3

Well, raining and 50 degrees out this morning on the way to school.  LOL  If the temperature dropped we would have quite a bit of snow covering the ground. :-P 

Counting Technique

I've shared this before but it's something I'm going to share again.  Preschoolers sometimes recount or forget objects when they are counting, especially if they aren't in a straight line.  Allowing them to place a small bead (or other object) on each item helps out with this, especially with numbers over ten.  If the child is counting concrete objects, encourage them to move them (to a specific area-such as the left of a piece of tape) after they have counted it.

Snowman Themed Addition

In our schools, they use linking cubes a lot with their math facts-addition, subtraction, multiplication, division.  Since this is the case, for me, it's important to introduce the use of linking cubes so they are a familiar as a "tool" as well as a toy.  So today we used them with an addition activity.  Each of the snowmen had a number on them.  I actually color coded them, but that is not necessary.  Works better for young students though.  Vocabulary we used: more/less, odd/even, add, take away/subtract, equal/how many in all, math fact.  I wrote the math facts on the dry erase board (corresponding colored markers) but you may wish to have your child write the math facts themselves if they are at that level.  I had a younger student today so chose to do it myself.  Each child turned over a snowman, stated the number on the snowman, and found that linking cube strip.  Then we put them together and counted how any in all. And I wrote the addition fact and we continued on.  This would make a nice bag center...especially for a kindergartener.  They should be able to do this activity on their own, filling in a math sheet with the math facts and answers.

Word Chunk Snowman

Used /s/ sound words and placed as many buttons as chunks in the word on the snowman.  These mat could also be used for number snowman,  or listening for beginning/middle/ending sounds as well. 

And some nice open-ended activities today:

Shaving Cream

We used this for our "snow" paint this week and thus needed (yes, I was told that) to pull it out for free exploration.  And since we were going to use the polar set with the "snow" dough...and that didn't work out due to the stickiness I pulled them out with the shaving cream.  :-P  See T. on the left there in the bottom picture.  No way was he going to even get close enough to get any of that stuff on him.  LOL  Some day...right now he just tells me he's going to watch. 

"Easel" Art

When we put our house up for sale, I moved a lot of stuff to storage and our easel was one of them.   So, used our sliding glass door as our easel.  :-)  Great conversation takes place when they are doing things side by side!  (And actually, the sliding glass door is a whole lot easier to clean than the easel.)

Music and Movement

Wanted to share that one of items we use for music and movement are holographic icicles.  You'll find those right now at the dollar stores...and everywhere else too! I bought three+ years ago during the after xmas clearance sale for .25 a piece.  :-P   I left them "as is". Cover the staple backs with tape as a safety precaution. They've lasted a long time but we don't have them out all the time either.   And so how you use your music and movement materials, the age of your children and their energy level are all going to play a part in how long they last.  The children really enjoy these "streamers". 

We had a laugh-filled morning and H. asked his dad..."Why did you come so soon?" at pick up time today.  :-P  Made my day!

Learning Styles

Been thinking a bit about how a child learns.  It's often described that a child's brain is like a sponge.  I tend to agree with that after working with children for nigh on 15 years.  I often take the attitude that "it's never to early" when it comes to new skills/concepts.  Does that mean they will always grasp the concept or master the skill?  No, but there will be brain connections being made and the more that path is traveled, from point a to point b in the brain, the more engrained it will be and the children will begin to grasp what's being taught or experienced.  A side note...remember that a sponge can get to a point where it will hold no more until it dries up.  A child's brain is the same way.  There is such a thing as information overload for child and adult alike.  So that brings me back to why I implement brief activities and lessons regarding a concept/skill daily vs. a large lesson in one day.  They will definitely retain more in the long run.

Learning Styles.  At the preschool level, we tend to  focus on three general types of learning.  Visual, auditory and tactile/kinesthetic.  Once a child gets older it's very interesting to begin to look in Howard Gardner's Seven Intelligences (mathematics/logic, visual/spatial, intra-personal, kinesthetic, interpersonal, musical, and linguistic).  I won't get into detail on those multiple intelligences but will state that for most roles that come with adulthood, it's necessary to meld together several of the intelligences.  I guess that leads us back to preschool learning styles.  Most preschool students already have this tendency to learn in all three ways.  And though it's important that we do know our students and how they learn best...it's also important to be sure we are being sure to introduce new skills and ideas in all three ways learning as they will be required to learn in those different ways as they enter into more formal schooling and further education.  Consider college classes...even high school classes.  The majority of "learning" takes place through reading text and listening to the teacher lecture.  Consider also that the children who are often the ones who are labeled as "trouble makers" or have difficulty in school...they are often the children who are kinesthetic and that goes against the grain of many teachers' natural way of teaching.  One thing that sets early childhood teachers aside from elementary and especially middle/high school teachers is their better understanding of child development, learning styles and their willingness to work with it all.  So, in a preschool setting you would, hopefully, see that when a new skill or concept is taught, there are several activities/centers set up that allow the new information to be reinforced in an auditory way, and a visual way and a hands-on approach also.  One thing I look for in a program is whether the teachers have put something in each center (dramatic play, sensory, science, math/manipulative, library etc) that corresponds with the concept or skill wishing to be taught.  I find that this often goes by the wayside because it's time consuming.  But children learn best through exploration and that hour of free play/free choice/center time can be used to reinforce the concept in several different learning styles.

Music and Movement is something that almost all children love...and early childhood teachers, they like it too.  Ever wonder why?  Here's my opinion...it encourages involvement of the kinethstetic learners and auditory learners right off and it's very easy to grab the attention of those visual learners by adding a few simple visuals.  Merry Music Maker and Dr. Jean are two individuals that truly understand this.

http://merrymusicmaker.com/  Our library system often has her included at least twice a year and she's awesome with the kids.  I've also attended a training with her and love her outlook toward early childhood and how children learn.

http://www.drjean.org/ Dr. Jean has an Activity of the Month.  Check them out.  And if you haven't tried either of these ladies cd's yet...please do so!  Check your local library!

Have a lovely day!