I lived in a small village in Mali near the Guinean border. Not far from my village was a gold mining town, like the old west, except not at all like the old west. Imagine holes in the ground about 24 inches wide and 15 to 20 feet deep, where people climb down with small […]
This morning I received an email from the Child Care Exchange (you should sign up for their newsletter) that reminded me about this great book that just got updated. Remote-Controlled Childhood has now become Beyond Remote-Controlled Childhood by Diane E. Levin from Wheelock College. This book is a must-have for all teachers, directors and parents of […]
Children might be frightened by some of the scary parts of Halloween so think about your group before you put together your this game. I saw this one on Pinterest. It looks easy enough to put together and might be fun (it is also filled with math!) Give each child an ice cube tray (this […]
Last July I wrote about children’s bookmaking as an activity that naturally supports early literacy but can also support early math. Click here and here to see some of those ideas. This morning, I received the Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children’s Media‘s monthly newsletter. They have developed a free program where children can […]
This week and next, I am going to finish exploring the end of Chapter 3 from Teaching Number in Preschool and Kindergarten. I know that this is taking a really long time, but I am finding that spending this much time on the details of this book to be worth the effort. Encourage the child […]
I came across this picture the other day on my phone. I must have taken it while observing one of my students out in the field. I remember that it struck me how engaged this toddler was with this small, tabletop set of dominoes. It got me thinking about Developmentally Appropriate Practice and how we […]
I know Abby through Alison. Remember that little preschool I wrote about where everyone’s needs were met in thoughtful and meaningful ways? Abby worked there when she was a young teacher, prior to having her own children. She was one of those teachers that people in Chicago talk about like this. ” Ooooh, do you […]
No matter how much I go on and on about early math – please remember that 99% of what we do with young children should be in the context of play-based learning. I saw this poster this morning, so I thought I would share it with you here.
The second half of Chapter 3 “Principles of Teaching Number” in Kamii’s Number in Preschool and Kindergarten describes “counting” as an emergent skill that can be observed in stages. Citing research from two studies that looked at children’s counting conducted by Greco (1962) and Meljac (1979) Kamii found that even though children may be able […]
I was recently at the Chicago Children’s Museum when I discovered this large shelf in the middle of the hallway filled with enormous dominoes. I stopped and took some pictures of them so I could write about them here (I am always thinking ahead:) Dominoes are such a great math manipulative and a wonderful classroom […]