WendyRabosky

This is what I do.

[wjrabosky]

Sometimes the kids say something like "in three days, I will get treasure box!!" She looked at her sticker chart yesterday and said, "On Wednesday, I will get treasure box."

[wjrabosky]

My mother created the bugs for this preschool game. She's such an awesome artist!

This is a strategy game. The goal is smash the last bug in the game. There is one row each of seven, five, three and one bugs. When it is his turn, a child may choose to smash one, two or three bugs, but they MUST be in the SAME row. The child who smashes the last bug wins. After we finished playing the game, each child was rewarded with a creepy-crawly.

In order to encourage the children to slow down and think, they are required to call out how many bugs they will smash before they begin smashing. Some children will call out "three!" when there are only one or two bugs left in each row. When this happens, I advise them to look at the board and add, "Are there three bugs left in any of the rows?" 

This game is meant for two players, and that is how we will play it now that the children can remember the rules. 

Some children will begin to naturally form strategies on their own. Others can be encouraged to think ahead with questioning. What will happen if you smash two bugs? What do you think Michael (the opponent) will do next if you smash THREE bugs?

I can not overstate how important it is to expose these children to as many areas of mathematical thought and problem solving as possible. Some children will just enjoy playing the game, and that's fine, too. They will develop strategies in their own time. 

[wjrabosky]

In 1989 NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics) developed a set of standards for mathematics as a framework to guide each state in developing mathematical standards. 

We  use these standards as part of the framework in creating our preschool math curriculum because these standards are established, research-based and designed by professionals "dedicated to improving the teaching and learning of mathematics" and "to ensure the highest quality mathematics education to all students".

We had a very successful day solving word problems. The chocolate chip cookie cereal we used might have something to do with that! Today we were solving with manipulatives (the cereal), but soon we will begin to increase the children's repertoire of problem solving techniques. (I can't wait!)

The second game, "Snack Attack!" is just a fun way to practice one-to-one correspondence, counting, and following directions.

Attention WCLC Parents and Grandparents: We are in the process of transitioning this blog to a new website (www.learnwithjoy.net). We feel that this will be a better platform for some of our future projects.  On the new site you will be able to leave comments/questions on the blog entries. I'd love to hear your feedback (constructive criticism is always welcome)! The sidebar of the new blog has blog entries categorized - this means you can search the archives for entries on a specific subject, We also plan to (one day soon!) launch some educational games that you, grandma or even the babysitter can play with your kids. 

We're just getting started, but there are great things ahead!

[wjrabosky]

Preschoolers working on the short 'a' sound. We use the lowercase letter 'a' because the lowercase letters are more frequently used (and therefore more important for children to be able to recognize and write). I always refer to it as 'the aaaaa letter' (drawing out the short 'a' sound, as in 'alligator') to prevent confusion.

[wjrabosky]

Figure-Ground discrimination is a component of visual discrimination.

It is the ability to distinguish a shape, letter, or (as in this case) a number from its background.

Children who have difficulties with Figure-Ground discrimination may have trouble finding their place on a page, reading graphs/charts, and finding details in a picture.

In this game, each child receives two cards with overlapping numbers on them. We take turns spinning the spinner, and every child with that number on their card traces it with their finger.

Yes - we managed to sneak “numeral recognition” into this game, too!

[wjrabosky]

We've been getting so much practice with beginning sounds and letter recognition! I can't wait to show you what's coming next!!

[wjrabosky]

While we have teacher planned art available for the children in another art area, we encourage "process art" with this "Do It Yourself Art Studio". 

The children have crayons, glue, collage supplies, magazines, scissors, tissue paper (and more!) available to them at all times. This is one way we "recycle" some art materials. Rather than throw away all of those extra heart (or tissue paper squares) that we've cut out, we make them accessible to the children for their own creations.   We also have easels with paint available most of the time. 

[wjrabosky]

More ways to practice counting! 

Sometimes in Small Group, we open a "store". These children are rolling a die to earn money. At the end of the round, they can exchange  pennies (if they have five) for a nickel, and go 'shopping'.

This is one way that we practice counting and one-to-one correspondence. It also helps us learn (and remember) that a nickel is worth five pennies.

[wjrabosky]

Practicing one-to-one correspondence would get awfully boring if we were just practicing regular old counting every day! We love to find new ways to keep it interesting in our classroom!

[wjrabosky]

For the first game, the children are choosing the correct beginning letter sound and stamping it beside the picture. The second part is an assessment (as well as additional practice) because each child is doing his/her own work. We have to always be assessing (not necessarily formally) whether or not our students are understanding the concepts we are teaching. If we move on before the children are MASTERING the concepts, we are creating confusion and frustration. I'm aware that we practice these letter sounds - s, m, f, l (and now 'a'!) - a LOT, but our goal is to commit them to the students' long term memories. As these activities get easier and easier (turning into 'rote' learning) the children can commit more of their brain to higher level thinking and problem solving.

[wjrabosky]

Math is much more than counting! Good math instruction should lead your students to higher level thinking and problem solving. These children are working on matrices (plural of "matrix"). In a matrix, each row shares an attribute (all the same shape OR all the same color) and each column shares a different attribute. A matrix is just (a very high level) of sorting/classifying. It's kind of like an EXTREME Venn Diagram. These children are figuring out precisely which color/shape goes in a given square. This was our first time working on matrices, so I helped them think it through by asking questions (what color needs to go here? And what shape? Can you find a card with that shape and color on it?) but these children are doing all their own work. Impressive, I know!

[wjrabosky]

This post shows how many ways we can differentiate an activity for one group of children to ensure that EVERYone is challenged. The goal is for the children to figure out what number is missing.

The first level is to have the cups begin with number one.

“1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, ___, 8…”

The next level is to have only a couple numbers before the missing numeral.

“6, 7, __,  9…”

The hardest level is to BEGIN with the missing numeral. 

“___, 4, 5…”

Of course, this activity is also differentiated by the different numbers we are choosing for our students. Some children are working with numbers 1-7, while others are working on 10-17.

[wjrabosky]

As these children grow up, their art projects will get more and more PRODUCT (result) oriented. Now is the time to let them truly experiment with different media. 

These children are using crayons and liquid watercolors (which are AWESOME, by the way). 

As teachers, it is our job to pair or choose media that the children may not get a chance to use at home. We want their childhood art experience to be complete. 

[wjrabosky]

More letter sounds! We can't get enough! We had this leftover balloon archway that was starting to lose it's steam. We wrote the letters we've been working on on the balloons (f, m, s, l). The children picked a picture card and got to pop a balloon with the corresponding letter/beginning sound. Because the balloons were older and losing their fizzle, they did not pop super loud and this game worked out even better than I could have hoped!

[wjrabosky]

Guessing and checking is a great activity for children of all ages. These children documented their guess (how many rubber bands on the sharpie) as well as the actual count. Pulling the rubber bands off the sharpies also helps strengthen the small motor muscles in our hands. We like to "change things up" and make learning different every day. That's how to keep kids interested!

[wjrabosky]

These children are practicing non-standard measurement using these (“unifix”) linking cubes.

"Common Core" may be the buzzword of the day, but our preschool program follows Ohio’s Early Learning Content Standards - which happen to be more rigorous and complete than the Common Core Standards.

These standards are also tailored specifically for preschool children, whereas the Common Core has no preschool standards.

If you are a preschool (or kindergarten) teacher (or parent) - check them out!

http://education.ohio.gov/getattachment/Topics/Early-Learning/Early-Learning-Content-Standards/ELSD-Cognition-Standards-FINAL-October-2012.pdf.aspx

[wjrabosky]

Art is such a valuable thing for preschoolers that we have included it in our program every day.

First, I'll state the obvious. These children are gaining fine motor skills and eye-hand coordination. They are building small muscles in their hands (the only way to get there is through practice!) that will make hand writing, pencil gripping, sewing, and (perhaps, one day...) surgery a possibility for their little hands.

Art is an emotional outlet. Even preschool children deal with frustrations daily - Art is a great way for them to express themselves.

Research shows that children learn through exploring and experimenting. 

They are developing perceptual abilities. These children are building their own knowledge (through experience!) about colors, shades, and textures. 

They are learning to solve problems. How do I make more blue watercolor paint? I am out of red paint, but Sally has some - what can I do?

These children are learning to appreciate diversity. As the children are working on their projects, we discuss the ways in which they are different. I also say things like "I like how you CHOSE to make yours different from your neighbors by using more circles (different colors, etc)." We value creativity!