COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT: Mathematics, Shapes

The same way we cultivate literacy daily, we use multiple opportunities during the day to help the Cardinals build competence in math. As the Cardinals count the amount of crackers and apples at the Snack Table, pour a substance from one container to another, put all the big rocks in one pile and the smaller ones in another at the Rock Sculpting Center, or tap a rhythmic pattern, they are learning math. Daily experiences like these provide the context for the Cardinals to evolve in math. Learning math is not just about numbers, it helps us make sense of the world around us and teaches us to reason and problem-solve.

Throughout her school day, Kaya is provided with endless opportunities to develop and enhance her mathematical skills. An example is the introduction of our math workshops. We launched our first Math Workshop with the mathematical concept of plane geometry, 2-D shapes. We first read Tana Hoban’s book, circles, triangles and squares. 

  

Using no text, this book introduces the geometric concepts of circles, triangles and squares demonstrated in photographs of bridges, buildings, windows, tires, boats, and other objects. After the read aloud, the Cardinals had a discussion on basic geometric shapes and their characteristics.     

After the thought-provoking discussion on two dimensional geometry shapes, the Cardinals set out to attend the workshops.

One station was set up with Shape Bingo ....

Another was the Playdough Shape Station with circle, square and rectangle cookie cutters.

Additional was a Shape Stamping Station where Kaya and the other Cardinals were encouraged to make a bird using 2-D shape stamps.

Lastly, the Rock Shape Challenge Station in the Rock Sculpting Center where Kaya and the other Cardinals picked a challenge and created the design using rocks.  

Throughout all these activities, Kaya demonstrated her recognition and understanding of basic geometric shapes such as square, circle, rectangle, triangle and oval.

LITERACY/LANGUAGE: Letter Awareness

A print rich environment that allows children to practice literacy skills in real-life experiences, combined with explicit teaching of key concepts, is the foundation of literacy learning in the early years. We develop literacy by continually exposing the Cardinals to oral and written language, and by building on prior knowledge and language experiences. Read alouds, storytelling, songs, thought-provoking discussions, journals, and dramatic play are just a few of the many fun and engaging strategies we use in the Cardinals’ classroom to develop literacy.  

The Cardinals were introduced to the idea of Literacy Workshops.  As a means of adding a tactile component to practice shaping the letters of the alphabet with different materials, three stations were set up for the Cardinals.  

In the playdough station Kaya and others were encouraged to “shape” a name, not just her own but a friend’s or a teacher's name.

The same concept was applied in the alphabet stamping station were Kaya used the letter stamps to “write” a friends’ and/or teachers’ name.

And, in the final station the Cardinals were provided with wood pieces as an activity to make capital letters. These wood pieces are a component of the Handwriting Without Tears program. Without any formal introduction to the program, the children are first invited to explore the wood pieces and use them to create as many letters as they could. The four wooden pieces are the basis for teaching children the skills of creating letters.  The pieces are referred to as big line, little line, big curve, little curve. Using only these shapes, the children learn how to form letters.   

All of these activities help Kaya internalize the shape of letter, while developing motor skills but, in her mind....she's just playing!

Kaya confidently recognizes the majority of the upper case letters and can identify some of the lower case. She is able to spell her name and can identify the beginning letter of the name of some of her classmates as well as that of her sister’s, “S for Saide. Kaya is able to hear and identify rhymes and can generate her own, e.g., sit-kit, fun-cun, red-bed, hog-bog. Using the name cards, Kaya is able to practice name recognition skills.

3's / 4's CURRICULUM SUMMARY

3’s /4’s Curriculum Summary

Social and Emotional Development:

The development of social relationships is a primary focus in early childhood. Early childhood education gives children the opportunity to develop relationships with peers and adults.  During their early years, children learn to trust adults who are not family members, to become friends with other children, to experience and work out conflicts, to ask for assistance and to help themselves with many everyday tasks.

Language and Literacy Development:

Young children learn through their senses while engaging in hands-on experiences, enjoying ample time for independent exploration, contemplation and group sharing and listening experiences.  Class meetings provide opportunities to develop listening and speaking skills as children discuss literature, share research homework, make plans for the day, and participate in sharing.  The children are intentionally surrounded by words: books of fiction, factual material, poetry, experience charts and their own creative writing, both in the classroom and in the library.  Children write names, create lists, label objects in the classroom, write notes to others, illustrate and author individual books, dictate stories and “kid write” in journals.  Class books are made from studies, special interests and group experiences.  Learners listen to stories for pleasure and to gain information.  The children regularly share their work and gain appreciation for the work of their peers.

Cognitive Development:

In the beginning of the year, children are exploring all aspects of their environment, and actively processing what they experience. While young children are mastering many facts, they are primarily experimenting with ideas and learning how to think about problems.  They explore their world by physically interacting with concrete materials, taking in information with all of their senses. Through their investigations, they learn about properties, patterns, relationships and mathematical concepts.  Learners explore and discover in direct connection with play, in conversations with peers and teachers, through independent activities and in small group guided experiences.  

Physical Development:

Young children are constantly learning with their whole bodies. On the nature playground and in the classroom, they are developing strength, stamina and coordination. In large motor activities, they strengthen their running, climbing and balance skills, building up muscles that allow them to move and hold themselves in increasingly complex ways. Through myriad activities like manipulating play dough, playing in the sandbox, doing puzzles, building, drawing, writing, painting, cutting and crafting, they are developing the fine motor coordination.

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT: Pencil Grip

It is vital for young children to move through different stages of pencil grasp development in order to develop good fine motor skills. Each stage is dependent on how steady the shoulder and arm muscles are. As a child develops physically, and takes part in lots of fun gross motor activities such as crawling, climbing and pushing, the shoulder and arm muscles will get stronger and steadier, and one will notice the child's grip on the pencil change and mature as well.

Here we can see Kaya demonstrating her pencil grip. She is able to keep her little finger and ring finger in the palm, allowing for the thumb, pointer, and middle finger to work together to hold the writing tool.  

With many opportunities for Kaya to hone her gross motor skills and fine motor abilities, she’ll soon acquire good control of the pencil for handwriting.