Some bugs fly (butterflies, ladybugs, bumblebees), some bugs crawl (spiders, beetles), some bugs hop (grasshoppers, cicadas), and some bugs slither (worms, caterpillars).  Using these attributes, children can sort themselves into groups who move the same way. Using your giant bucket of bugs, have the children close their eyes and pick one out.  They can then decide if their bug hops, crawls, slithers or flies.

At group time you can introduce the song about Sammie. It goes like this.

This is a story about Sammie.

His father sent him out to buy bread.

But Sammie didn’t feel like walking,

he wished he could fly instead.

“If I was a  butterfly (pick a bug that flies), I would fly to the store, fly to the store, fly to the store.

If I were a butterfly, I would fly to the store to buy bread.”

 

This is a story about Sammie.

His father sent him out to buy bread.

But Sammie didn’t feel like walking,

he wished he could crawl instead.

“If I was an ant (pick a bug that crawls) I would crawl to the store, crawl to the store, crawl to the store.

If I was an ant I would crawl to the store to buy bread.”

You continue this until all of the bugs have had their turn.  Sammie is an absolute favorite and a great way to get the kids moving.  Remember to discuss how the bugs are the same and how they are different.

This first one is called “Scoop-a-Bug Sorting Kit” and is pretty interesting.  The bugs are clearly fake, with exaggerated attributes, such as bright and vivid colors, which are easily identified by children. The scoopers look a bit like scissors with wide holes for fingers but rather than blades there is a clear scooper that can pick up the bugs in order to place them in the clear specimen jars.  Break this set out onto your math manipulatives table and I bet the kids are drawn to it like moths to a flame (get it?).

This second set is simply called “Real Bugs Discovery Kit”.  The sorting mechanism is far less interesting but the bugs themselves are really cool.  They are real specimens encased in clear acrylic so the children can see them from all angles.  It comes with a book of information about each specimen (there are a dozen in all).

Next is a set that focuses on size and sorting.  The bugs come in small, medium and large and can be sorted into each section of the box. You can change the categories to yellow, blue, and red, or legs, wings, or shells.  These options make it a bit more interesting but if you already have a set of classroom insects, you could create your own sorting map, or sectioned box with any attributes you choose.

]]> https://earlymathcounts.org/sorting-bugs/feed/ 2 2673 https://earlymathcounts.org/organizing-your-manipulatives/ https://earlymathcounts.org/organizing-your-manipulatives/#respond Mon, 31 Mar 2014 10:13:18 +0000 http://www.mathathome.org/blog1/?p=2577 I vividly remember the days when every single toy in my classroom was dumped out onto the floor and the thought of cleaning all of them up making me feel sick to my stomach.

I know that this is the reason a lot of teachers only allow certain areas of the room to be open at a time, or why they put baskets of toys up on high shelves.  It is simply too much to clean up every single day with very small children. 

Organizing the classroom manipulatives in ways that boost children’s attempts at cleaning up while supporting the early mathematical concept of sorting and categorizing can also  help you out.  Imagine having bins put together like the ones above so that toddlers can see what toy goes where.  At the bottom of each bin, put a colorful picture of the type of toy that belongs in the bin so even if emptied out, the children can easily see that what each bin is for.

Having baskets with labels on them is also a good idea.

I don’t think you need to frame the pictures (although it is a nice touch) but with a little bit of effort, your camera cell phone and a color printer, you can make labels that clearly let the children know what belongs inside.

I also like these buckets although I would have drawings or pictures of the toys in addition to the words.  They now make chalkboard paint that you can put virtually anywhere.  Once dry, you can write on the surface and erase it just like an old-fashioned chalk board.  Using this method allows for flexibility and multipurpose use of organizing materials. At clean up time, allow the children to sort the toys to the best of their abilities.  They will not always get it right and will still need a lot of adult supervision and intervention, but developing a system that allows the children some autonomy in the efforts is a good thing, for them and for you.

Alison suggested that I look at felt as an alternative to wood and recommended  a  website called Etsy to see several samples of handmade pretend food items.  I found so many wonderful examples of interesting food items that will both be familiar to children and novel.  I found breakfast sets, complete with pancakes and syrup, eggs and bacon, orange juice and tea.  There are pasta sets, sandwich sets, burger sets, cookie sets, tea sets… the list goes on and on.

As far as International and multicultural foods, I found lots of sushi and other Asian choices, and a few other limited options.  I was hoping for a full-blown Mexican set, some red beans and rice, perhaps a Gyros or two.  No such luck.  I did find a falafel set that looks fun…And this taco set

which is beautiful but not necessarily comprehensive if you want to have foods that look like the foods children see in their homes.

This got me thinking about the pros and cons of wood vs. felt in terms of durability and use.  I must say, the felt options are clearly safer for crawling babies and toddlers, as they can’t bop themselves on the head with these (or anybody else, for that matter), they are machine washable, and as versatile as all the other types.  The wooden sets are also beautifully made, can be wiped down, and will give you a nice goose egg on your forehead if thrown in just the right way.

All of these are great for encouraging early math concepts.  Most come apart and can be separated into pieces (the tacos above are made from several separate pieces; the shells, the meat, the lettuce, the cheese, etc., and children can assemble their tacos as they please).  They can be sorted, classified, counted, organized, and distributed.  Teachers can set up all sorts of play scenarios that require children to create relationships with the food items in meaningful ways.

I really liked this box of chocolates and can imagine all sorts of math play taking place if children had access to it.

Learning Standard A — Explore objects and patterns.

Benchmarks

8.A.ECa – Sort, order, compare and describe objects according to characteristics or attributes.

8.A.ECb – Recognize, duplicate, extend and create simple patterns in various formats.

Example Performance Indicators

Compare and describe various objects (e.g., describe different rocks by referring to their size, shape, weight, etc.).

Create a simple repeating pattern using classroom objects (e.g., build a tower of alternating blue and red cubes).

Replicate patterns in music (e.g., repeat a sound pattern by clapping or tapping foot lightly; sing a repetitive song such as B-I-N-G-O; play finger game such as Open, Shut Them).

Sort objects according to different characteristics (e.g., sort crayons by color and size; sort small blocks by shape and color).

Order objects in a series by a single attribute (e.g., order fire trucks from shortest to longest; order rocks from smooth to rough).

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Patterns, groups, attributes- these concepts can be seen all over the ece classroom.  With the right materials children will naturally sort, classify, and organize their stuff into groups or patterns without much prompting from the adults around them.

Alternating Unifix Cubes – by two’s no less.

Nesting Dolls- From big to small

Peg Board – Only the orange ones.

Click here, here, or here to read more about sorting and attributes.