Tool-Time Math
Math At Home
by Diann Gano, M.Ed
4y ago
  “Miss Diann, I need a hammer! Look! Look! See? I need a hammer!” Three-year-old fix-it man Jonathan is pointing to a loose wagon screw that needs his immediate attention. We turn the wagon on its side to take a closer look at the wheel. Yes! We definitely have a loose screw. “You need a hammer to pound it in?” I ask. “Yes!” exclaims Jonathan. I return with a hammer and Jonathan immediately recognizes that I have made a huge mistake. “No, not that one! I need a hammer! Look, it has a line. I need a hammer to fit in there to make it tight.” This was not Jonathan’s first rodeo. He kn ..read more
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If I Had a Hammer
Math At Home
by Diann Gano, M.Ed
4y ago
  “I did it! Look! I did it! I hammered it all the way down!” shouts three-year-old Gabe with pride. This is our preschoolers’ first day of learning how to hammer nails into stumps. “Playing with dangerous tools” is one of the top six activities that children enjoy when engaging in “risky” play. Risky play is about boundary testing, which leads to greater self-confidence, increased resilience and better risk-management skills. Today’s activity—which teaches life skills along with math and science—is a popular one with our preschoolers. We want the children in our care to develop and unde ..read more
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Snacking through the Math Standards
Math At Home
by Diann Gano, M.Ed
4y ago
  Many parents and early childhood educators are turning to online learning as they shelter in place during the COVID-19 pandemic. But there are many ways to meet your early math standards while engaging in everyday offline activities—if you know what to look for. Since we started out the month of April in the kitchen, let’s continue with the food theme and snack our way through some early math adventures! To get started, grab a tray of fruits, veggies and maybe even a sandwich. How will you use these food items to meet your early math standards? By matching and sorting! With this s ..read more
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Take Time for Comfort Food
Math At Home
by Diann Gano, M.Ed
4y ago
Welcome Math Friends!  As I write this blog post, the entire state of Illinois is under “shelter in place” orders to minimize the spread of Covid-19. Thank you to our state leaders for doing what is necessary to keep us safe. Thank you to everyone who is out there performing essential duties—from the healthcare workers on the front lines of the pandemic to the store clerks, restaurant employees and municipal workers who are keeping our stores stocked and our families fed and providing essential services in our communities. Thank you to the child care professionals who are ..read more
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Puzzle Perfection!
Math At Home
by Diann Gano, M.Ed
4y ago
Out of the corner of my eye, I am drawn to the persistence of three-year-old Saaliha. She is calmly and patiently working her way through a rainbow puzzle.  Her friends are busy in other parts of the classroom, but Saaliha is problem-solving her way to mastery. I sit down next to her to observe her skills. She is so deep in her learning that she doesn’t notice. Open-ended materials such as these often create learning scenarios that allow long periods of deep concentration, and today is no different. Although this puzzle often lands in the block area as a snake, a tunnel or a flowing river ..read more
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Rainbows, Tunnels and Playing, Oh My!
Math At Home
by Diann Gano, M.Ed
4y ago
“Look, look, I made a rainbow!” exclaims three-year-old Evelyn. We are at the clay table and I take a look at her creation. A small orange arch, decorated with gemstones and tree bark and Mardi Gras beads sits on a yellow clay base. “It is a rainbow!” Noah responds gleefully! “I can make a rainbow, too!”   As Noah begins to create a rainbow, I extend the learning by mentioning that the shape is also called an arch. “My grandma lives by the Arch!” Noah shouts. Evelyn thinks she has seen the Arch, too.  And so begins our investigation of arches. All of the arch blocks ..read more
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Meeting Math Measurement Standards Through Play
Math At Home
by Diann Gano, M.Ed
4y ago
  “Look, I can pick up six blocks at once! It’s not even heavy!” It was pickup time in our block center—and now we had a challenge on our hands. I recognized that this had become a learning moment that shouldn’t be rushed. So we extended the activity to allow a bit more time for some impromptu learning. Children are always fascinated by the size and weight of objects—and their desire to show us how strong they are gives us a perfect opportunity to meet a math measurement standard through play. Jonathan had thrown the challenge down and here was our chance to use math vocabulary, collect d ..read more
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The Weight of Things
Math At Home
by Diann Gano, M.Ed
4y ago
    “Look, I can pick up six blocks at once! It’s not even heavy!” It’s pickup time in the block center and now we have a challenge on our hands.  I recognize that this has taken on a learning moment that we can’t rush but we can extend. Showing off our muscles and strength is another perfect opportunity to meet a math measurement standard through play. Children are always fascinated by how big or how heavy things are. Jonathan had thrown the challenge down and here was our chance to use math vocabulary, collect data, make predictions and practice our geometric shape ..read more
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Inch by Inch
Math At Home
by Diann Gano, M.Ed
4y ago
We brought out the tape measurers this week.  Ah, nothing like a tool in the hand of young friends to get the juices flowing and the neurons firing up!  Playful math! Math that is done for no other purpose than the sheer joy and fun it brings. I don’t worry that they don’t understand the concept of inches or feet or even if they recognize numbers, or have numbers actually facing them! This tape measure was easy for the children to use.  It was small and fit in the palm of their hands. It could be pulled out without snapping back unless the children pushed in on a button on the ..read more
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Lessons from the Block Shelves
Math At Home
by Diann Gano, M.Ed
4y ago
  Earlier this month, we talked about the math explosion that took place during our block play. I shared the delight of capturing a play buzz to knock out early learning standards through play. To my astonishment, our play buzz continued all the way through our pickup activities and, let me just say, that never happens! We usually have one older “organizer” who likes to put the unit blocks in their specific spaces, but the younger children struggle just to find any shelf in the room that will work. So, when I saw the empty shelves actually being organized in order, I took note. “Here’s a ..read more
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