|
|
 |
 |
| Type
of Submission: |
|
This
idea is a submission for:
X A curriculum
idea
__Cool things to do
__A special issue
|
|
| Age
group for whom this activity is appropriate:
|
3-5
year olds
| Brief
description of activity: |
IThis
is a game I designed to develop number skills and
one-to-one correspondence through a board game that
can accompany the Make-a-Bug software activity in
Millie’s Math House.
| What
I did to set this up and how I followed through: |
- Whenever
I introduce a new material, I let the kids
play with it first without any particular
instructions or goals. I realized this is
actually like the exploratory mode in the
software. The kids liked putting together
wacky bugs and we counted together the number
of eyes, tails, etc. You could make a chart,
too, showing how many bugs have one ear, two
ears, three ears, etc.
Playing the Make-a-Bug Game
- The
kids have to be able to roll the die and match
the number indicated with the number of body
parts, and also match the picture with the
body parts to place on the bug.
- I
took the first turn to show them how to count
the pips on the die and how to use the cube
to identify which body part they would add
on that turn.
- I
expected them to be able to count to six and
to take turns. Sometimes I needed to prompt
them by asking questions like, "What
number comes after two?" On each turn,
we counted together to make sure that the
number of parts matched the number on the
die.
- There
is no real end to this game. We played until
we used up all the parts or until the kids
were satisfied with the bug they had created.
- Some
kids liked to draw the bug they had made afterwards.
This way they got to keep it.
|
| Materials
used: |
Millie’s
Math House, felt for board game, glue, die, cube,
paper and crayons for children’s bug creations
| What
the children had to do and what I wanted them
to learn: |
Each
time a child used the computer, he or she put a mark
in the appropriate box. I also used this chart to
help the children keep track of taking turns.
| Background:
How I got the idea: |
I
noticed that some kids just love one particular activity
in the software and could get stuck with that. I wanted
to think of a way of helping them explore the same concepts
that were in the game in a different way. Also, the software
activity is confining because it puts the body parts on
the bug in a certain way. In the felt board game, the
kids could put the parts on any way they wanted. For example,
they could put spots on the head - the computer doesn't
let you do this
|
| Analysis:
How the kids and/or parents responded: |
|
The
kids loved making wacky bugs. They also seemed to like
doing it as a board game where they could look at each
other’s creations and compare. To extend the game,
I asked a lot of questions like, "Who has more
ears?" How many people made bugs with three feet?"
I think it helped them learn about counting and numbers
in a fun way. They like the computer game and I also
like to provide opportunities in the real world to count
and actually hold the different shapes to enable the
kids to get a better idea about number and quantity.
I think it also helps them learn that there’s a
connection between what they do on the computer and
what they do in other areas of our classroom.
|
| Extension |
|
Once
the kids have mastered numbers up to six or seem to
be getting bored with
the game, you could use two dice and have them work
with numbers up to 12.
If some kids don’t yet understand number concepts,
you could play this as a matching game. Then you would
only use the cube with the body parts.
|
| CLICK
HERE TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN PROMISING PRACTICE |
|
|
|
