When a toddler takes two objects and brings them together to play, he is creating a relationship between them.  Sometimes, the two objects are not meant to go together; think – a small wooden block and a plastic bowl from the housekeeping area. They weren’t designed to go together, but through the imagination of the toddler, they become relational.  The child may put the block in the bowl and then take it out if the bowl. Sometimes, the two objects are meant to go together.  We call this “functional – relational:” think – a cup and a saucer.  The child puts the cup on the saucer and then takes it off again. In and out, on and off, together and apart are all concepts explored through this kind of play.   These spatial experiences are mathematical.

Now consider the toddler who repeats the same sequences in her play.  She takes the play phone off the shelf, lefts the receiver to her ear, pulls on the cord, and drags the phone around.  She then repeats this experience in the same order; listen, pull, and drag. This repetitive play reinforces sequencing concepts.

Both of the examples above are typical experiences many toddlers have in child care.  You can further support the play by providing language to the experiences.  Use math vocabulary with the children to reinforce spatial relationships and sequencing.

Some of the dollhouses seemed far too delicate for play. Some were very complicated. They all had intricate details that revealed a slice of life from a certain place and time so carefully designed that you can almost see teeny families living inside of them.

How does “housekeeping” or “dollhouse” play connect to math?  As young children explore family life, they consider the relationships that exist between people and between the roles they play.  Imagine the young child putting the baby in his crib.  She is thinking about the babies she knows in her life.  They are small and they are young.  Their growing understanding is that babies are smaller than some other people and younger than some other people.  It is the relationship between the baby’s age and size as well as his role relative to others in his family.  Once the young child begins making these observations and putting this information together, she is constructing logico-mathematical knowledge.

Arranging the furniture and sorting it into the appropriate rooms is another way the young child develops mathematical competence while playing with dollhouses.  The places and spaces she encounters will challenge her social constructs about how these things compare to her own home and family.  She will have to develop new schemas for new information as her current schemas are challenged.  Even if your classroom dollhouse doesn’t look exactly like the homes your children live in, they provide a framework for play that encourages creative thinking.

Take a look at the article (it is short, about a page) and see what you think.  The writers indicate that children not only need time to engage in pretend play, but need adults who understand how to support it in meaningful and appropriate ways.

The only thing I would add, is that children also need time to develop these play scenarios.  That means we need to build uninterrupted play time into each day’s schedule.  It is also a good idea to consider letting children continue playing even though the schedule says it is time to be done, and see where it goes.

There are many varieties of this sort of toy set.  If and when I ever have an opportunity to set up a preschool program again, I would buy these sets and outfit my housekeeping area with these pretend foods, rather than plastic ones (some of the foods in those sets are unidentifiable).

The opportunities for pretend play with these sets are pretty apparent.  In fact, the play will look a lot like the housekeeping play you are already used to.  But when I look at these sets, I see tons of potential for math talk and math vocabulary. The design of these foods allows for conversations about “some,” “half,” “most,” and “all.”  At first, this math vocabulary will probably need to be facilitated by the grown-ups in the program.  The teacher will ask for “some watermelon” or a “half of an apple.”  You might ask for a sandwich with “most of the cheese” but only “some meat.”  Over time, this “math talk” will become a part of the child’s vocabulary and they will use the words correctly.

Remember that child care in its finest form should mimic the home as much as possible.  Ideally, the conversations above are the kind that  parents have with children during play and mealtimes when they are at home.  We need to provide these experiences in meaningful ways for children while in care outside of the home.  Try using math vocabulary a few times a day and see what happens.  Let us know!

Next week I am going to show you some of the wonderful multicultural food manipulatives I have found.  Wait til you see them.