Mathematics Kindergarten
Strand: GEOMETRY (K.G) Standard K.G.1
Using nursery rhymes and a finger play, students will learn about spatial relationships and commonly used position words, such as on, under, above, and up.
Books
These activities are designed using nursery rhymes and a finger play to teach simple spatial relationships and commonly used position words. The following are the commonly used position words that Kindergarten students should know; on, under, above, up, over, down, behind, below, top, bottom, in front of, next to, beside, far, near.
1. Demonstrate a positive learning attitude.
5. Make mathematical connections.
Invitation to Learn
Share the book Each Peach Pear Plum. Emphasize the position words.
In this bookWith your little eye
Take a look
And play 'I spy'
Instructional Procedures
Jack - lummi sticks | water - shake water in a jug or bottle | |
Jill - tambourine | down - xylophone backwards | |
up - xylophone | crown - a maraca | |
after - drum |
Five little speckled frogs,
Sitting on a speckled log,
Eating the most delicious bugs,
Yum, Yum.
One jumped into the pool,
Where it was nice and cool,
Now there are four green speckled frogs,
Glub, glub.
REPEAT.
a. Cut down on all four corners until you come to the first creased line.
b. Fold in the two sides and the front to reinforce the box.
c. Fold the fourth side in half and use it for the lid.
Curriculum Extensions / Adaptations / Integration
You will find your 1st clue on top of the pencil sharpener.
Clue #2 will be found beside the teacher's desk, under the garbage can.
You will find your next clue in front of the playhouse.
Your next clue is next to the shelf at the back of the room.
The next clue will be found behind the door.
Stand inside the hoop.
Hold the hoop over your head.
Walk through the hoop.
Hop beside the hoop.
Research Basis
Sutton, J. & Krueger, A. (Eds.). (2002). ED Thoughts: What we know about Mathematics teaching and learning. Aurora, CO: Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning.
Mathematical learning in young children is strongly linked to sense perception and concrete experience. Children move toward an understanding of symbols, and eventually abstract concepts, only after they have first experienced ideas on a concrete level. The more avenues there are to receive data through the senses, the more connections the brain can make. The more connections that are made, the better a learner can understand a new idea.
When a school or district implements a well-designed and planned parent involvement effort, all students benefit, regardless of race, ethnicity, or income. Parent involvement means that the parents or guardians of a student are participating actively in a child's education. It ranges from volunteering in a student's classroom to reading with them before bedtime to assuming leadership through participation on school committees. Parent involvement is not effective if available only as an afterthought. Inclusion of parents requires a planned and well-coordinated effort, which takes time. The benefits of a well-coordinated parent involvement program include: higher grades; better attendance; consistent completion of homework; higher graduation rates; decreased alcohol use, violence, and antisocial behavior; and greater support and ratings of teachers by parents and community.
Susan B. Neuman, Ed. D. (Nov./Dec 2204). Learning From Poems & Rhymes. Scholastic Parent & Child, page 32.
Nursery rhymes are especially powerful, because they are so memorable. Research has found that children who are familiar with nursery rhymes when they enter kindergarten often have an easier time learning to read. This is probably because rhyming helps children discover many common word patters (such as those in quick/stick or down/town). And the more familiar these patterns become in oral language, the more easily children will recognize them when they begin to encounter them in print.