Teaching Math is Simple

This guy is using unit blocks to try and enclose himself into a space under a shelf.  What a great self-motivated and fully engaging activity to discover properties of length and measurement.

Many new teachers that I mentor tend to get overwhelmed trying to find play-based math activities for preschoolers.  For a more seasoned teacher like myself, finding opportunities to explore math concepts throughout the day is easy.  Through years of teaching and refining my awareness, I see math in our every day world.  For those who are newer and struggling in this area, I'm reposting a list that my instructor posted for our class of a few simple math activities, many of which work both for toddlers and preschoolers:

Stacking blocks

Comparing big and small objects

Exploring coins (use a magnifying glass to look at shiny new pennies)

Read books that talk about more than on character (such as 10 ants going marching)

Pose problems and seek answers

Collect items

Sort items by color

Look for shapes in the room

Make patterns of items (such as red block, blue block, green block)

Matching games (lotto)

Dominos

Use a measure tape to measure items in the classroom

Use scales to measure more or less

Use measuring cups 

Clearly from this list, preschool math is not only about teaching numbers and numerals. It's about offering materials that provide inherent math concepts so that the child can learn with their hands and heart.  It's also about being aware of when the interest level is at its peak and offering curriculum that appeals to the interest level. (For instance, our new measuring tape and dial scale is based on our recent continuous dialogue about length and measurement).

 Using measuring cups

 Lining up objects

Copying patterns with objects in space

I linked up with Link & Learn on No Time For Flash Cards and Teach Preschool!

Pattern Activity

Bean Patch time at Beansprouts often consists of any of what I consider "pre-academic" skills.  Pattern recognition and repeating plays an important role in the development of literacy and math.  Without the ability to identify and recognize patterns, the ability to recognize letters and literacy symbols will not emerge.  Also, the spatial reasoning skills practiced during pattern games is also critical in both math and reading.  

On a more philosophical side, patterns can lead to extensions in thinking.  It brings singularity into multiple. It reflects and repeats and is consistent. What would have been inside the box, now extends beyond the box.

This day during Bean Patch, we were making patterns with wooden sticks and the patterns began to remind me of a book we got from the library.  The author places Chinese characters into the picture of the story as well as a translation on the bottom of the page.  We used these characters as models for our stick patterning. It was fun to bring the book to that level of interaction!

Height Chart

We had a lot of fun doing a height measurement chart with the kids today. The kids chose yarn and flower colors and we saw just how much they've sprouted!

Inspiration for this chart came from Learning and Teaching with Preschoolers.  They also link some other very interesting looking measurement activities!

I was also inspired by their basket of measuring tapes, so I included the only one that I could find and added some strings, some taller and some shorter than their bodies.  Let's just see what happens.

A Simple Ladybug Game

Simple Lady Bug Game

Inspired by my friend Tanya of Tanya's Learning Garden who does lots of clothespin games with children!  Andrea brought in the ladybug chart and it was just the perfect thing to make a work out of.

Items needed:

Chart w/4 or more ladybugs with varying numbers of spots

Cards with numerals that correspond with number of spots on each ladybug

Clothespins

Laminator, if needed

Variations are endless depending on the theme:

Bee stripes

Pieces of fruit

Vehicles in groups of different sizes OR

Vehicles with different numbers of tires, passengers, etc.

Can also vary according to developmental abiltiies:

One clothespin per card

No clothespins, just match by placing card on top

Match correct number of dots rather than numerals

Seed Game

I had extra corn and sunflower seeds so I made a little counting chart, inspired by Counting Coconuts and also by Leslie, who always makes cool little works like this.

Simple, fun, took just five minutes to make, and I learned that Ro can count to fifty with almost no help!

By dividing the chart into rows of ten, I was hoping the kids would pick up on the numeric patterns in the columns.

Wordless Wednesday

        

The Block Experiment

Julie and I were wondering what would happen if we took the Magna-Tiles out of classroom.  Would the children's innate desire to use their spatial reasoning skills need an outlet, thereby 'forcing' them to find another outlet?

Our theory was that if we took out the Magna-Tiles, the wooden blocks would make a big comeback.

Well, it wasn't quite that dramatic.

Every day since we took out the tiles (that was Tuesday), the kids have asked where they are.  I usually reply with, "We're taking a break from those for now".  Well today I suggested they use the blocks and what ensued was an hour of continuous block usage, with the internalization of mathematical concepts so apparent in their play that I had to document it here.

In the early childhood profession, we tend to really emphasize what children learn through various types of play.  For instance, in their dramatic play (ie. "make believe") they learn how to navigate through real-life scripts, processing information they receive in the world and contenxualizing it for themselves.  They practice social skills in the safety of an imaginary world.  And since they are having fun, the motivation to use and enhance these skills is amplified.  Leslie said it well in a friendly debate the other day that she believes children should be engaged in "purposeful play".

So, about the blocks.  Very purposeful play.

The most impressive part of the block play was the gender balance (well, we only had six kids today but it was still impressive!)

And the beautiful teamwork and conversation and planning seemed to go on and on.  They talked about "missing pieces" and which shape would work and they problem solved and used trial and error to complete their block path.

T was very excited when he realized that who half circles made a whole circle and what directions to put the blocks to complete the shape.  He said, "Look, Stephanie, a circle!".  It was like something he knew and had experienced suddenly made sense differently.

Using materials that offer geometry and equality between pieces and lengths creates pathways in the brain for math conceptualization.  Unit blocks use standard sizes so that two sides of a square is the length of a rectangle, and two right triangles equal one square.  Unit blocks allow children to use all basic arithmatic concepts because they are based on the same unit.  I'm a little frustrated that the diameter of the circle pieces are greater than the length of a square's edge, but they do fit the "bridge" pieces, the rectangular pieces with half the circumference of the circle cut out, making one side concave.  The perimeter of any shape can be enclosed by any other blocks. (Notice how much language we can use to bring math into our conversations?)

So here are some examples of these mathematical concepts at work:

The above photo is a great example...see how he not only organized them into shapes but also expressed an understanding of equal width.

Notice that one rectangle plus two squares equals the length of one long rectangle?  And the diagonal of two right triangles is the same as the diagonal of a square of equal height?

E's corn kernal tower (see the corn kernal?)  This one is about balance and physics.  Here's another view (phase one of this building project):

T pointed out empty space as well (working with negative values):

As he pointed out, "there's nothing there".

We'll bring the Magna-Tiles back out at some point.  It was one of those things we had to try, just to see. 

*Stephanie*