Activities

Place different-sized pool noodles in the large group area. Let the children explore making shapes, tools and toys. Ask, “I wonder what you are making?” and “I notice that you formed a circle.

Place a colander with large holes and some pipe cleaners on the table. Demonstrate how the children can place the pipe cleaners in the holes and have them complete the task.

Cut a pool noodle into manageable lengths and provide a small, lightweight ball. Show the children how to strike the ball with the noodle and direct it toward a goal. You can turn a box on its side with the open end acting as the goal.

Place pool noodles on the rug in the large group area. Have the children move from one to the other, jumping over each noodle.

Read Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Bill Martin, Jr. and Eric Carle and add the names of the children in the classroom at the end. This could be done in large group.

Read Not Norman: A Goldfish Story by Kelly Bennett and discuss the characters in the book. Ask the children to name all the characters from the book and write them on chart paper. Discuss which characters are in the story the most and least.

Provide notepaper and envelopes in the writing center. Encourage the children to write notes that can be folded and placed in the envelopes. They may deliver these notes to classroom friends or take them home to their families.

Before reading a book, show the children the title and point out the first letter. Relate it to children's names that have the same first letter.

Create simple sketches of block structures and post them in the Block Area. Have the children recreate the structures by following the plan in the sketch. When finished, take a photograph and place it next to the sketch that is posted.

Sit on the floor with the infant facing you. Givethe infant a small toy to hold in his/her hand. Once he/she has a good grasp of the toy, give him/her a second toy to hold in his/her other hand.

Get down on the infant's level, smile and say, "Come with me to wash your hands. It's time to eat breakfast.

Get down on the infant's level, smile and say, “Come with me to wash your hands. It's time to eat breakfast.

Make a number Bingo game with plastic sleeves that sports card collectors use. These are about 81/2" x 11" and typically have spaces for nine cards. Cut paper to fit in the spaces and write a numeral on each one.

Provide soft, textured number blocks or puzzles for the infant to manipulate during floor time. You can make some number blocks with empty plastic single-serve baby food containers.

Provide blocks with numbers, and encourage the children to place them in order. Once they are in order remove a block and ask which number block is missing.

Read My First Bilingual Book – Numbers (or a similar number board book). Point out numbers on the page and encourage the infant to interact with the pictures. Say, “Here are three bunnies. One, two, three. And here's the number three.

Read My First Number Board Book by DK Publishing to one child or a small group of children. Encourage the children to match real objects to the pictures or photographs. For example, say, "I see two socks on this page.

After reading a counting book, such as My Little Counting Book by Roger Priddy, compare some of the pages. Say, "There are five stars on this page and one ball on this page. There are more stars than balls.

You will need paper plates numbered zero to 10 and Unifix® cubes. Have the children dance to music. When the music stops, the children will look at the plate they are close to and gather that number of children around the plate.

Explain to the children in large group, “I am thinking of a number that describes how many feet a cat has. Can you tell me, Number Detectives?” The children would answer “four.” Be sure to include zero in your clues.