Invitation to Play–Toddler Winter Maths Shelves

 

I set up some maths based objects with a Winter theme for Luath to investigate.

Set Up

The objects were:

Christmas trees – 2 cookie cutters, 1 wooden, 1 silicone mould

1 Santa silicone mould

4 wooden sheep (all the same), 2 camels (different colours), 2 polar bears (1 small, 1 big)

3 wooden balls, 10 wooden cubes, 1 wooden star brain teaser

a tape measure, a dice, scales, paper, crayons

number flutes (previously from Christmas crackers), number snowflakes (from our countdown to Christmas board)

3 Russian doll cookie cutters (fit inside each other) – Babushka

bowl with different types of cones, Christmas baubles (all same size but slightly different colour/texture), one ribbon parcel bow

Play

The first object Luath selected was the Santa silicone mould.  She immediately asked if we could make yoghurt drops for later.  We spooned yoghurt into the mould, as we did so we counted how many were left to fill.  They went in the freezer and Luath had them after lunch.

Next she selected the tape measure and wanted to measure her Christmas elf.  She went to the door where she gets measured.  This was followed by some weighing on the scales.

The activity that Luath loved the most and did on and off throughout the day was bowling with the balls,  She tried the baubles and cones but found the balls were the only ones that rolled well.  We had to role play, Luath being Granny – we saw Granny bowl a few frames last time we visited.

Luath had tried to roll the dice down the alley so we started rolling the dice, counting the dots and then selecting that number ball.  We only had 3 unnumbered balls but each time we still made sure to selected the correct ball.  I love imagination.

In combination with the bowling we rode on the bus (how we had reached the bowling alley when we saw granny), then to the shop - lots of counting of objects and then to the library.

The polar bears were rehomed, first Luath was taking them to Africa but I suggested the Artic might be better.  They settled comfortably on a cushion.

I picked the bricks off the floor at one point and made a tower.  Luath immediately copied and declared her one was taller, it was by a few mms.

At times I returned objects to the shelves. At one point we took turns being on the stage and then selecting a prize from the shelf so by dinner time it was bare and the objects in various places and uses around the living room.

We had a busy on/off play session over the course of the day.  Some of it maths related others not Luath led and initiated most activities. .I did make an effort to use maths terms and use numbers, although Luath was and does this anyway. I had thought that Luath might do some sorting as I had set up many different opportunities within the shelves for this.

(Luath is 34 months)