Puzzle in a Shoebox

PUZZLE IN A SHOEBOX from "Games for Preschoolers" (BJ10) Product with more ideas in www.welearnbydoing.com

      Skills Reinforced:  Working together, thinking   

      Procedure: 

1.      Two groups of children sit on the floor in two different circles.  

2.      Two shoeboxes are filled with puzzle pieces in it.

3.      If an 8-piece puzzle is used, then have eight children sit in a circle.   Keep the same amount of puzzle pieces for each group.  

4.      At the signal, the first child pulls out one piece of puzzle from each group and places it in the middle of the circle and returns to their spot.

5.      The shoebox is passed to the second child who places it next to the other puzzle piece.

6.      This continues until all 8 pieces of puzzle are next to each other.

7.      As the groups start again with the first child, that child has 10 seconds to try to connect two pieces together.   If the child does it or does not do it, that child returns to their spot and the next child tries to connect two pieces.

8.      This continues around the circle until the puzzle is completed.   Remember if a child connects two pieces of puzzle together only, they must return to their spot.  

9.      The first team to complete the puzzle ...

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One to Ten Relay

ONE to TEN RELAY Game

 Skills Reinforced:  Number Identification 1-10, Fine and Gross Motor Movements

   Procedure:

1.      Select two groups of ten and have a starting line ten feet from the blackboard.

2.      The teacher gives the “go” signal with a movement direction like “hop on one foot.”  The first set of children move to the blackboard hopping.   They write number 1 and hop back.   The children with numbers three and six proceed to “hop on one foot” and exchange squares.   The caller also tries to get to one of the squares “hopping on one foot” before the others do.

3.      The next set of children may have the direction of walking backwards and they write 2 and walk backwards back.  

4.      The teacher continues to create eight more movements until the number 10 is on the blackboard.

5.      This game can continue by having the children erase one number at a time in a relay until all the numbers are erased.

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Classroom Theme Ideas Using the Five Senses

Young children learn through their 5 senses; therefore, providing hands-on experience allows children to touch, see, smell, taste, and hear become important.    Many of us have a hard time developing materials.   Teachers in Pre-school and Pre-K often teach centering on themes.   Teachers need to think about those real objects and materials for the children to explore.    Do we think about the ways children can use their 5 senses?  One way is to pick a theme and then gather objects and materials.   Children must observe, handle, and explore from that theme.   Here are a few ideas from this new workshop for teachers: 

See:  Draw the Other Half.  The child is given half a picture and must think and draw the other half like an apple or a chair.

Touch:  Texture Touch.  Place a piece of silk, sandpaper, piece of wood, piece of paper, and others and have the children describe what they touch like is it soft, hard, rough, etc.

Smell and Taste:  Describe the Taste and Smell:  

Show a picture of a number of food items that include a wide variety of tastes such as jellybeans, lemons, pretzels, marshmallows, peanuts, raisins, chocolate, olives, sour apples, pickles, onions, melons, and let the children describe to you how they taste.  Record words the children use like possible words: sour, sweet, tangy, spicy, salty, bitter, yucky, etc.  Add the words to your word wall and then find out which are the children’s favorite foods.



 

Hear:  

Repeat the Rhythm.  Tap out a simple rhythm and have children repeat it back to you.  Alternatively, you can clap the rhythm or use musical instruments.

Hear:  From Arms Up Keep Moving CD (9183) check out "The Senses Song" found in www.welearnbydoing.com

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K-3 Ideas

Put These Ideas Into Practice!

        What children learn through play?

·      Teaches child’s vocabularies to increase

·     Teaches sharing and taking turns and improves cooperation

·      Teaches children to develop empathy and express emotions

·      Teaches children to develop patience and tolerance

·      Teaches children to feel successful and gain independence      

Allow Enrichment Experiences for Children K-3

·          Read the comic strips from the local newspaper.   Teacher can cut the comic strip, write on the back of each strip a number so you know the sequence order, mix them up, and let the children in groups of four arrange them in sequential order.   Or white-out the comic strip sayings and let the child create a new story.  

·          Find familiar pictures or commercials in magazines, cut them out and use them as their first words in reading what they see everyday in their environment like a stop sign or a Burger King picture.

·         Use magazines or newspaper pictures and/or pictures of families, show the different kinds of emotions like smiling, being angry, crying and then ask the children questions about the pictures.  Let the children draw how they are feeling.

 

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Thoughts about Math for Children under 5

It seems many of you have written and enjoyed the Math for Children Under Five games. Here are some more ideas. Thank you for your comments! 

Through mathematics, children learn to understand their world in terms of numbers and shapes. They learn to reason, to connect ideas, and to think logically. Every day as children play they are using mathematics without even realizing it. Children learn best when they find answers for themselves and in their own way.

Try these games:
Sitting On A Number - Double set of numbers 1-10 are made. One set of numbers is handed out to ten children who sit on that number. (Make sure they are mixed up.)  The child selected has his/her back turned and selects a number from the second set. The child turns around and trys to guess where the number is located and has three quesses. If the child wins, the child with that number has the next opportunity to guess. 

How Many Body Parts - Ask the the children tell how you how many body parts they have like "How many noses in the room?"  "How many eyes, or ears, or chins, or fingers or toes are in the room counting the teacher?"

Remember, very young children (age’s two to five) need activities to challenge their minds.




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Indoor Games

Children love to play games, imitate, participate with others, and just have a good time.   These games have the goals needed for the teacher to motivate the children to use those muscles and exercise their bodies into a fun-based educational learning way through these designed games for use both outdoors and indoors.   Here are 3 fun games:

        Balloon Laugh:

        Procedure:  Throw the balloon up in the air. The child must keep the balloon up in the air and laugh continuously. If the balloon hits the ground, the laughter stops!

        Variation:  Can use many children in groups with many balloons as everyone in the group laughs until the balloon hits the ground for the group.

       Clap and Sing Nursery Rhymes:

        Procedure:  Let the children clap their hands and sing some of the choruses from the nursery rhymes that they know like Mary Had A Little Lamb, Jack and Jill, and add other songs like Bingo, Old MacDonald Had a Farm, etc.

        Variation: Rhythms are most important in the children and so have the children clap out the rhythm of the song without singing any of the words.

 

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