Early Math Counts’s Dr. Kathleen Sheridan sent me this link last week. It will take you to a pretty cool website called “Bedtime Math”. Founded by parents, this not-for-profit organization is funded by private donors who simply want to increase math opportunities for young children in school and at home. This is not unlike the […]
Take a look at this list of things you can say to children that are affirming, positive, and inspirational. Take a break from… “I love it” “Great job” “Good Work” “I need you to…” “I want you to…”
A couple of years ago, when we explored apples and one of our Thursday Themes, we took a stab at figuring out the circumferences using string. You can also use string to figure out how tall your pumpkins are. Have children hold string next to their pumpkins from the top of their stems to the bottom […]
Last Friday I had the pleasure of visiting my friend B’s kindergarten class in San Francisco, California. I met her teachers and her friends. I saw the class toys and books. B introduced me to the class frogs, birds, and fish. I watched her dance with her friends and then get ready to go on […]
Lots of kids know that there are seeds inside of a pumpkin. They may have seen them if they carved Jack-o-Lanterns during October. They may have even toasted them and had a tasty treat. My older sister was allergic to pumpkin, so my dad tied garbage bags to her arms (all the way up to […]
Read this…. The Building Blocks of a Good Pre-K
Last week I wrote about a floor-sized number line that creates endless possibilities for mathematic-related activities in the classroom. Later that same day, I found this one that is just different enough that I thought I should write about it as well. It is pretty big just like the other one, but this one only goes from […]
This morning’s Chicago Tribune reported the results of last spring’s ISAT tests (for those of you outside of Illinois these are the dreaded Illinois Standards Achievement Tests). Passing scores were increased recently supposedly to better prepare students for more difficult exams in the future. Just as expected, the passing rates fell just as the the Common Core […]
Any activity that can be taken from the table top to the floor, or from sitting and working with hands to using the whole body, is usually good for young children. I saw this jumbo floor number line and started imagining all of the ways I would use it. It is big enough that children […]
Did you know the Museum of Science and Industry has replaced the ancient “Petroleum” exhibit with a new exhibit called “Numbers in Nature”? Last week, this article in the Chicago Tribune described the new math space and it sounds fabulous. The Mirror Maze terrifies me, but I might drive on down to Hyde Park to see […]