Activities! On Comparing Sizes & Numbers, Estimating and…Being Polite!
Activities! On Comparing Sizes & Numbers, Estimating and…Being Polite!
Every other Wednesday, we post selections from our vast archive of Early Math & Early Childhood Ed activities. Please tell your friends, colleagues, librarians & parents. Thank you!
Hello!
This week in Activities…
FROM MATHSTART
Mathstart is a series of 63 storybooks organized into three levels for Pre-K through Grade 4. Each story teaches a different mathematical skill.
• 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. Activity PDF
• 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. Activity PDF
• 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. Activity PDF
Where to find MathStart Books!
FROM I SEE I LEARN
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. 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.
• Freda Says Please (being polite)
Freda likes to play school. But when she pretends to be the teacher, she doesn’t always say “please” and “thank you.” See how her friends help Freda learn how to be polite. Saying “please,” “thank you” and “you’re welcome” shows respect for others and demonstrates appreciation for kind behavior.
Thank you for reading my book!
Where to find I See I Learn books!
BONUS VIDEO!
Stuart Reads Freda Says Please
EVENTS & HAPPENINGS
March 11, 2023, 2 pm: Meet & Greet at Wellesley Books
82 Central Street, Wellesley MA
If you’re in the neighborhood, please come! I will be talking about my latest book, Show & Tell: Great Graphs and Smart Charts, an introduction to infographics. Information graphics combine symbols, colors and artwork with charts and graphs to make often complex data easier to understand. I am thrilled that it has been selected for the 2023 Best STEM Books List by the National Science Teachers Association (NTSA) and the Children’s Book Council. For more background, here is my interview in American Statistical Association magazine, Amstat. Illustrated by Teresa Bellón. (Charlesbridge)
••••••
Sharpen your pencils! It’s time again for the YMSA: The Young Mathematical Story Author Competition.
In its first four years, nearly 2,000 students from 160 schools in 18 countries submitted original stories. That’s amazing! And 2023 is shaping up to be our best year yet. Entries will be accepted until Friday, March 31 at 17:00 UK time. Check out the link above for details.
There are prizes!