K - Act. 19: National Symbol Patterns

Summary

This lesson plan suggests many ways to improve students' patterning skills.

Materials

• red, white, and blue construction paper
• tracing pattern for threecornered hat
• pictures or stamps of national symbols
• glue
• scissors

Additional Resources

America's Symbols (Newbridge)
Open Court Kindergarten Unit 6 "Red, White, and Blue"

Background for Teachers

Patterning is an important part of kindergarten. It helps build a type of thinking that will be useful in many aspects of our lives. It also builds the foundation for algebraic thinking later in mathematics content. Students should be able to duplicate, extend, and then create patterns. At first, they will be simple patters such as AB and AAB. Later in the year, more complex patterns can be introduced for those who are ready. These can include ABC, AABB, ABA, and growing patterns.

Intended Learning Outcomes

Intended Learning Outcomes
1. Demonstrate a positive learning attitude.

Process Skills
Symbolization, prediction

Instructional Procedures

Invitation to Learn
Teacher shows the first part of a pattern on a strip. The rest of the pattern is hidden behind a tube. Gradually the teacher pulls the strip out of the tube to reveal the next part of the pattern. The class predicts what the next symbol will be.

Instructional Procedures

1. Children trace the pattern on to red, white, and blue construction paper.
2. Students cut out the hat pieces and staple them to make a threecorner hat.
3. Given copies of national symbols, children will cut out and glue the symbols on their hat in a pattern. Encourage appropriate complexity.
4. Students share their patterns with others in the class. The class identifies what kind of pattern was created.

Extensions

Family Connections
Encourage patterning at home. Children can find patterns in their environment, or duplicate and extend a parent’s pattern. Child and parent can take turns creating a pattern and having the other extend it further.

Assessment Plan

A simple checklist can record whether or not the children created patterns and of what kind. Anecdotal notes can also be taken on what the children did.