Activities

Show the children two items – a scarf and a table, for example – and ask them to guess which is longer. Lay the scarf on the table to compare. Do this with other items in the classroom.

Write numerals, in order, on the bottom of muffin tins and again on the inside. A one-dozen tin will be numbered 1–12.

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

Choose two food items, such as a saltine cracker and a banana. Have the children guess which one will be salty.

Provide two or more examples of art, such as Andy Warhol's “Campbell's Soup” and Vincent Van Gogh's “Sunflowers.” Ask the children which one they prefer and why.

Show three “consonant-vowel-consonant” words with a picture, such as cat, log and dog. Ask the children, “Two of these words rhyme, one does not rhyme. Can you tell me which one does not rhyme with the others?” This could be done in large group.

Read the book Do You Know Which One Will Grow? by Susan Shea and Tom Slaughter. Ask the children to compare the living and nonliving things in the book. Reread and have them give a thumbs up to the "Yes to..." items.

Give the children two choices during a specific activity throughout the day. Say, "Would you like a blue one or a green one," or "Do you want a book or a truck?" Have them select one.

Ask the children to find rocks and place them in a bucket. Pick up two rocks at a time and hold them up for the children to see.

Tell the class you're going to read them a story. Ask the children to listen and watch for times when the characters use one of their five senses.

Whisper a message in the ear of the first child. That child repeats what he/she heard to the next child, and so on. Encourage the child at the end to share the message with the whole group and compare it to the original message.

Sit with the child on the floor. Speak/babble in a normal tone and volume, encouraging the child to repeat the sounds. Then whisper the same word or sound and encourage the child to whisper it as well.

Describe the job of someone who keeps people safe and healthy. Have the children guess the community helper. For example, “I drive a big, red truck that makes a lot of noise. I have to have water to do my job.

Read Whoever You Are by Mem Fox. Ask the children questions and have the group respond whether or not they like or do the same things.

Introduce the children and let them talk about themselves so they get to know each other. This can be done in small group.

Introduce the children and let them talk about themselves so they get to know each other. This can be done in small group.

Place photographs of each child on a cookie-cutter- shaped paper cutout. Put the cutouts in a container such as a cookie tin or animal cracker box.

Display photographs of typical homes, your center or school, workplaces and neighborhoods in your community. Discuss with the children the different functions of these places as part of the community.

Display photographs of typical homes in your community, your center or school, workplaces and neighborhoods in your community. Discuss with the children the different functions of these places as part of the community.

At the end of center time, use a call-and-response chant to get the children's attention and remind them that it is cleanup time:
Teacher: “Who got the toys out?”

Children: “We got the toys out.