A lot of the children have
been attempting to hold their fingers
out when singing counting songs such as 5 Speckled Frogs, and some are
attempting to say a few counting words. To encourage this further and help the
children develop their mathematical awareness this month’s topic will be based
around Numbers, shapes, space and measures.
The activities this month will be
based around the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) areas of learning:
Prime areas:
PSED: Show
interest in the activities of others and respond differently to children and
adults (e.g. more interested in watching children than adults and pay more
attention when children talk to them. PD:
Use different body parts to help act out action number rhymes. C&L:
Use single words.
Specific areas:
L: Handles
books and printed materials with interest.
M: Say some counting words randomly.
EA&D: Move their whole
bodies to sounds they enjoy, such as music or regular beats. UW: Become absorbed in combining
objects (e.g. banging two objects or placing objects into containers.)
Some of the activities we will be doing
this month will involve:
·
Number
puppets. Using socks and other materials Hannah will
assist the children to make number puppets to use alongside songs and rhymes.
·
Play
dough shapes. Afia will help the children to recognise
different shapes by helping them to create different shapes with the play dough
using cutters and simple tools.
·
Water
& Sand play. Using a variety of resources such as bottles,
cups and small containers, Christina will support the children to transport,
fill and empty, measure and compare sizes. Christina will also be introducing
new words.
·
Categorising
objects. Alice will be supporting the children to fill
balloons, bags and other containers and help the children to categorise them by
size and weight and count them.
·
Physical
play. Amina will help the children to explore shapes
and space through physical play. Amina will set up different physical
activities both indoors and outside and introduce new words as she encourages
the children to climb, crawl, jump, count and recognise different shapes as they
use the equipment.
·
Treasure
Baskets. Manjit will be supporting the children to
explore shape, space and measures using treasure baskets containing hard and
soft objects and heavy and light objects.
Some ideas to support your children at home:
·
Bath
time. Bath time is a great time to experiment with
quantities and measures. Put a variety of bottles and containers of different
sizes and shapes in the bath and let your child play with them using key words
with your child such as big, small, empty, full, heavy and light. Encourage
your child to repeat these words.
·
Puzzles.
Puzzles are great way to help children learn about space. Spend a quiet 10
minutes with your child completing puzzles together, puzzles with large pieces
and knobs or handles are ideal for small hands and help support success in
fitting shapes into spaces.
