Playful Math Activities for Preschoolers
Parents.com offers family activities by age that can be done at home. I particularly like their article on Playful Math Activities for Preschoolers, found here: https://www.parents.com/kids/education/math-and-science/10-playful-math-activities/. I like this article because it reinforces how many math activities can be done in real life context, such as counting objects, identifying shapes, and playing simple board games like Candy Land. I think breaking down how these activities are important for development reinforces parents’ self-efficacy that they are able to effectively help their children grow and learn at home.
Authentic Learning Experience: These activities involve real-work problems because the problems are identified in real-life contexts. This expands learning beyond the classroom and uses thinking skills and metacognition. By exploring objects and shapes around the house, on walks, and in routines, children are engaged in open-ended inquiry where they are self-directed in their own learning based on what is interesting to them.
Developmentally Appropriate Practices: Practicing counting, identifying shapes, and relating numbers to quantities are all part of important math learning standards for preschool aged children. Allowing children to direct their interests and following their lead supports an interest-based approach. Additionally, this is culturally appropriate because these activities can be done in authentic homes that represent unique values and diverse communities that all children live in. For example, the items that are being counted can change in a kitchen based on the meals that are being prepared, and the shapes being identified can be named in a child’s native language.
Learning Standards:
Approaches to Learning
Goal P-ATL 7. Child persists in tasks.
Goal P-ATL 10. Child demonstrates initiative and independence.
Goal P-ATL 11. Child shows interest in and curiosity about the world around them.
Social and Emotional Development
Goal P-SE 1. Child engages in and maintains positive relationships and interactions with adults.
Goal P-SE 9. Child recognizes self as a unique individual having own abilities, characteristics, emotions, and interests.
Goal P-SE 11. Child has sense of belonging to family, community, and other groups.
Language and Communication
Goal P-LC 5. Child expresses self in increasingly long, detailed, and sophisticated ways.
Goal P-LC 6. Child understands and uses a wide variety of words for a variety of purposes.
Mathematics Development
Goal P-MATH 1. Child knows number names and the count sequence.
Goal P-MATH 2. Child recognizes the number of objects in a small set.
Goal P-MATH 3. Child understands the relationship between numbers and quantities.
Goal P-MATH 4. Child compares numbers.
Goal P-MATH 5. Child associates a quantity with written numerals up to 5 and begins to write numbers.
Goal P-MATH 9. Child identifies, describes, compares, and composes shapes.
Perceptual, Motor, and Physical Development
Goal P-PMP 3. Child demonstrates increasing control, strength, and coordination of small muscles.
Source: https://www.parents.com/toddlers-preschoolers/activities/
