Miss Allison's Friends

A retelling of a classic folktale, The Enormous Potato by Aubrey Davis, lends itself well to talking about ordering things by their size. Seriation is an important mathematical skill that can be practiced with a variety of found or created materials. Consider incorporating some outside time by collecting and ordering a set of rocks, leaves or sticks. What objects could show biggest to smallest around your house?   - Allison

The names of shapes are among the first math vocabulary that young children learn. But what I love about this shape book is that those are never even mentioned! Shapes, Reshape!  by Silvia Borando focuses on the fun of creating with shapes. At home, take this idea to the next level by using shape sorter pieces, pattern blocks, cookie cutters or just some good old construction paper to shape and reshape your child’s imagination.  What reshaping materials were hiding around your house?  - Allison

There are so many skills involved in this game! I find that turn taking games of all kinds are so valuable for teaching social skills and self-regulation. This one from "The Dad Lab" also incorporates the following math skills:  1:1 counting correspondence (counting the dots on the dice or the total number of blocks on the tower) Counting out a number of items (counting out the correct number of Dulpos from the bin) Subitizing (recognizing the number of dots without having to count) What other toys at your house could be used to play this game? 

Use this video to jumpstart a conversation about math skills at your child's level. Here are some skills to target: 1:1 counting correspondence Counting backwards Decomposing numbers (breaking down numbers into their parts; 5: 1 and 4 or 2 and 3, etc.) Simple substraction with manipulatives This is also an opportunity for kids to practice representation by finding or creating props for their version of frogs and a log. What props did you find at your house? Let me know in the comments below!  - Allison