MEANINGFUL MATH INFORMATION TAKEN FROM EARLY MATH ITS

MEANINGFUL MATH INFORMATION TAKEN FROM EARLY MATH: IT’S MORE THAN NUMBERS BY ANN S. EPSTEIN

Early Childhood Math “Early math is tied to concrete objects… children’s actions and words present opportunities to extend their thinking (and) math thinking happens without rote lessons”-Dr. Ann S. Epstein

Early Childhood Math learning happens when teachers intentionally incorporate mathematical experiences, vocabulary and concepts into the early childhood classroom.

Classification Grouping things according to common traits

Classification ~ Learning Environment Provide and label interesting materials such as ~ Materials for sorting and matching

Classification ~ Learning Environment • Provide and label interesting materials such as ~ Materials that encourage sorting by multiple attributes

Classification ~ Daily Routine Encourage children to collect and sort things throughout the day. Make time for collecting on the playground or nature walks.

Classification ~ Daily Routine • Encourage children to collect and sort things throughout the day. Use clean up time for matching sorting.

Classification ~ Daily Routine Ask children to make/group things that are the same and to make/group things that are different.

Classification ~ Daily Routine q Challenge children with increasingly complex guessing games that require them to hold more than one mental image in mind.

Seriation Ordering things based on differences (largest to smallest) or a repeating sequence/pattern.

Seriation ~ Learning Environment Provide materials whose attributes can easily be compared such sets of materials in different sizes.

Seriation ~ Learning Environment Provide materials that can be sorted into different sizes.

Seriation ~ Learning Environment Provide materials children can use to make their own series and patterns.

Seriation ~ Daily Routine Create opportunities for making comparisons

Number ~ “Preschoolers see the world as an arena for counting. Children want to count everything” Howard Gardner

Number ~ Learning Environment Provide materials that encourage comparing numbers that children can line up and count.

Number ~ Learning Environment Provide materials with numbers on them.

Number ~ Learning Environment Provide materials that con fit together in one-to -one correspondence.

Number ~ Daily Routine Encourage counting by inviting children to gather and distribute materials at snack time, clean up, and small group time.

Space ~ Learning Environment Preschoolers negotiate the physical world with confidence. They run, climb, follow familiar routes, solve puzzles, build things.

Space ~ daily routine Allow time for children to explore and work with materials on their own.

Time ~ Learning enviornment Preschoolers deal with time concretely. Have materials that children can set in motion ~ Objects that fall, roll, dip, spin or rock in space can be used to explore fast, slow, and other time concepts.

Learning Environment ~ Include living things outdoors and indoors to show natural cycles of plant and animal life.

Daily Routine ~ A consistent daily routine is the single most important element in developing time concepts.

Daily Routine ~ Encourage children to describe their intentions and activities in time related language. � What will you add next? � Did it take longer to carry the blocks or stack them?

“This is the first duty of an educator; stir up life, but leave it free to develop. ” Montessori, 1895,