Activities! Comparing Sizes, Numbers, Estimating. And...Wow!..Learning How to Write Your Own Name! (en espańol & English)
Every other Wednesday, we post selections from our vast and wonderful archive of Early Math & Early Childhood Ed activities.
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Hello!
Do you remember when you learned to write your own name? It was a very big deal!
I remember it meant I could get my very own library card. Libraries are some of my favorite places. Librarians some of my favorite people!
This week’s featured I See I Learn book is about Carlos, one the children at Ready, Set Pre-K, learning how to write his name. The story—which is available en español, !Carlos escribe su nobre! (escribir tu nobre), and English, Write on, Carlos! (writing)—begins with Carlos practicing writing the letter “C” at his desk at home. His mom helps him with the rest of the letters. Carlos practices everywhere, including in the sandbox at the playground drawing letters with a stick!
Although the featured skill is “cognitive,” this is also a story about self-confidence, a very important emotional skill. Whether you believe you can do something or you believe you can’t, you are probably right. Carlos knows he can do this and he keeps trying. This is also a story about friendship. I love how all his friends—and also his mom—cheer him on! Write on, Carlos!
Carlos and the gang can’t wait to read our three featured MathStart stories this week. Miss Cathy, their teacher, will help them with any math skills that are still a little advanced for them.
Right On, Ready, Set, Pre-K kids!
The Best Bug Parade (comparing sizes)
More or Less (comparing numbers)
Betcha! (estimating)
Your friend,
Stuart
Mathstart is a series of 63 storybooks organized into three levels for Pre-K through Grade 4. Each story teaches a different mathematical skill.
You can buy individual books, sets by level, or a complete library. Here is list of where to find MathStart books!
• Level 1, Pre-K/ Kindergarten:
The Best Bug Parade (comparing sizes)
In Ladybug's garden, everything is relative. Who's big? Bigger? Biggest? Long, longer, longest? Short, shorter, shortest? Line up! It's time for the best bug parade of all. Comparing sizes is a simple form of classification and is necessary for the development of measurement skills.
• Level 2, Kindergarten / Grade 1: More or Less (comparing numbers)
Mr. Shaw, the principal of Bayside School is retiring, so all the students and teachers, and family and friends are having a picnic in his honor. There are lots of game booths, and the most popular is "Let Eddie Guess Your Age!" Eddie, blindfolded and sitting on a chair over a large tub of water, can figure out how old someone is by asking a few key questions: "Is you age less than 10?" "Yes." "More than 7?" "Yes." "It is an even number?" "No." "Then you're 9 years old," says Eddie triumphantly. If Eddie has to ask more than 6 questions, he gets dunked. Find out whether Eddie can swim! Comparing numbers is an important part of the understanding the mathematical concepts of "greater than" and "less than,"and for developing skills for making logical guesses.
• Level 3, Grades 2 - 4: Betcha! (estimating)
At stake: two free tickets to the All-Star Game. And all you have to do is guess the correct number of jelly beans in a jar at the Planet Toys store. One particularly smart boy has an idea: Why guess when you can estimate? He plays a game with his buddy as they head over to the store on the bus. With four people per row, 10 rows, and a few folks standing in the aisle, he estimates that there are 43 people on the bus. "I didn't even need a pencil," he boasts. Knowing how to estimate is an essential skill that helps children determine approximate totals as well as check the reasonableness of their solutions to problems.
I See I Learn is a series of 16 stories that follow the adventures of the children in Miss Cathy’s class at Ready, Set Pre-K in See-and-Learn City (see map).
Each story focuses on a different social, emotional, health & safety and cognitive skill important for success in school and in life. For Pre-K / Kindergarten.
¡Carlos escribe su nombre! (escribir tu nobre)
Carlos quiere escribir su nombre como sus amigos pueden. Le pida ayuda a su mamá. Practica muchas veces. Ve como Carlos se siente orgulloso para mostrar a sus amigos lo que puede hacer. Aprendiendo como escribir su propio nombre ayuda a un niño a reconocer y formar las letras y le lleva a escribir más palabras.
¡Escribiendo es divertido!
Write On, Carlos! (writing your name)
Carlos wants to write his name like some of his friends can. He asks his mom for help. He practices over and over again. See how proud Carlos is to show his friends what he can do.
Learning how to write one’s own name helps a child learn how to recognize and form letters and leads to writing more words.
Writing is fun!
Do you have a story or a question? Please send me an email!