ECED4080 Creating Materials for Use by Young Children

Learning Task :

Candles on Cakes

Description:

Students like to work with manipulative materials, because of this, I believe thatthis activity will enhance a child learning. During this activity a child will count from 0 – 5 by placing candles on a pictureof a birthday cake. The child will also learn to associate numerals with various quantities.

Learning Task Adapted from:

Child Care Centre Activities(English Class).

Age Group:

4-5

Subject Area:

Mathematics.

Subject Strand :

Number Sense and Numeration. Subject Topic:

Counting.

Background Information:

Children enjoy working with concrete materials, because in this age they learn through senses. They like birthday parties, so when they see this activity it will attract them because it includes candles and birthday cakes. This learning task help the child to know numbers and how to count them from 0 – 5.

Students Learning Outcomes:

Number Sense and Numeration :

Knowing numbers and their quantity from 0 – 5 by using hands when they take the candles and put them on the birthday cake and using language when they say the numbers.

ECED4080 Creating Materials for Use by Young Children

Prerequisite Concepts, Skills, & Values:

*Follows class routines for selecting, using and returning individual learning tasks.

*Adopts class routines for obtaining teachers support to demonstrate learning tasks and obtain assistance.

*Small muscle control to hold the candles.

*Count from 0 – 5

Learning Theory & Instructional Strategies:

*The activity is based upon cognitive approach where students make links with previous experiences.

*Children have the ability to understand and work with the task from the materials that appear in front of them.

*The teacher demonstrates the learning task for the child initially, and then the child works on his own.

*Children will work with materials that appeal to the senses and that be touched, moved about and rearranged ( working with manipulative).

StudentCharacteristics Accommodated:

*This activity provides concrete materials and experience for children because they know that we put candles on the birthday cake, so they will enjoy in taking the candles and putting them on the birthday cake. And the concrete way is more useful than using the abstract way.

Introduction of the learning task:

*Show the child how to remove the activity tray from the shelf noting the placement of each item.

*Tell the child the name of the activity.

*Take the learning task to open space.

*Put the mat in the open space.

*Demonstrate how to take the pictures of the birthday cake cards out of the box and place them on the mat, thenshow the child how to take the cardnumbers and place them on the picture of the birthday cake.. Finally, show him how to count the candles and put them on the picture of the birthday cake.

ECED4080 Creating Materials for Use by Young Children

*Allow the child to take the candle and count to be ensured that he/she understand the idea of the activity.

Checklist of Try Item:

*Tray

*Box for candles and numbers cards

*6 laminated papers whichhave a picture of birthday cake for each one.

Simplification Activities:

*You can start only from 0 to 2 at the beginning, so the child can understand the idea of counting and the quantity.

Extension Activities:

*Increase the numbers to be from 6 – 10 to enhance the child knowledge about counting and the quantity of numbers.

*Ask the child to count other objects in the classroom.

Enrichment Activities:

*Students could use a die to count the dots when it is thrown.

*Ask the child" how many dotsare on this face of the die

*Student could use real candles to be more useful for learning through touching.

*You could ask the child" How old are you? Can you show me with your fingers.

*You could say "stand up and show me how to walk 5 steps.

Assessment Techniques:

*Children use self-correctas they do this task.

*Observe the child while doing the task and provide feedback.

*Examines the child’s product .

Feedback suggestions:

*What numeral is this?

*How many candles should you put on the cake?

*Does the numeral match the number of candles?

*Can you arrange the candles in a different way and still have five?

Evaluation Rubric:

*Understands numberquantities.

ECED4080 Creating Materials for Use by Young Children

*Unable to match quantities to numerals may not remember at what number to stop counting.

*With teacher support counts out objects to match the numerals up to 5 in sequential order, begins to use self-correcting strategy of first counting objects into hand, then recounting objects on to activity.

*with teacher support the child counts out objects up to 5 to match the numerals in random order uses self-correcting strategy of first counting objects into hand, then recounting objects on to activity.

*Counts out objects to 5 easily without any mistakes and uses higher numerals, which includes counting up to 10, fully understands relating symbols to quantity .

Vocabulary:

Numbers, count, candles, birthday cake, put, add, quantity.

References:

*The activity is adapted from Child Care Centreat Sultan

Qaboos University English Class.

Comments Hits, & suggestions:

Start with simple numberswhich easy for the child.

*Introduce the activity to the child using a simple step by step process.

*Make sure that the pictures are clear.

*Store the candles and numbers cards in a box.

Key Words:

Numbers, count, candles, birthday cake, add.

Submitted by: Zainab AL-Toubi.

Materials needed :

Pictures of candles:

ECED4080 Creating Materials for Use by Young Children

Pictures of birthday cake:

Scissors:

Numbers:

Procedure:

Cut and laminate the numbers:

Cut and laminate the candles

Put all cards on a box:

Keep all things in the tray: