Easter baking is an opportunity to practise problem solving. Do children know what to do if they take their cakes out of the oven and they are not properly baked yet? How can they tell if a cake is cooked all the way through? It's time to decide!
Hand washing may seem old-fashioned but it is an eco-friendly alternative to using a washing machine. Get children involved and help them to consolidate their understanding of how a series of steps lead to a successful outcome.
Jenni Clarke provides a guide to how mathematics can be enhanced through in the moment planning, with continuous provision which helps practitioners to identify and extend learning opportunities for all children.
Explore the books of David Walliams as a great resource to introduce key mathematical concepts, such as counting, writing numbers and comparing sizes. Making playdough snakes is guaranteed to be a hit.
Is there a danger that, in squeezing in so many elements, the proposed Early Learning Goals for mathematics will be unachievable for all but a few children, leading to many being assessed as failing before they start school?
Children's natural fascination with snow and ice provides a strong impetus for counting when practitioners weave in rhymes and use resources imaginatively. Extend this to small world play with penguins and icy landscapes.
The fourth part of this series linking maths and children's books focuses on Monkey Do! by Allan Ahlberg and Andre Amstutz. As the Monkey jumps from page to page, use it as an opportunity to teach children in your setting about positional language.
Ailsa Chapman re-visits that stalwart of early years resourcing – the tuff tray, and suggests ways to extend its scope, with a range of imaginative ideas that children can take in any direction.
Get your week off to a flying start with our suggestions for seasonal activities which embrace wet and windy weather! Don't forget to get involved with Early Years Wellbeing Week – and find out how one nursery is combating Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).
Children are often drawn to puddles. Take advantage of rainy weather to take the children outdoors to splash in the puddles and hone their mathematics skills in an entertaining way.
Make Maths learning fun and effective with our pick of EYE’s Maths activities linked to the Early Years Foundation Stage. No need for expensive resources – improvise and use what you already have in your setting.
From creating a small world play area to hunting for apples, there are lots of innovative ways children can explore poetry and rhyme.
Penny Dale's picture book featuring the popular rhyme is alive with onomatopoeia and crammed with detail, making it a great stimulus for counting backwards and learning to take away one from any number to ten.
The second part of this series linking rhyme and maths focuses on Ten Apples Up on Top by Dr Seuss. Use these ideas to get children adding up and using mathematical language as part of the fun.
Develop children's mathematical skills by supporting them to cut food into shapes to produce a varied and colourful salad. Help them to link the shapes they have created with those in the environment.
Identifying patterns in the natural and man-made worlds is a great way to develop an awareness of sequencing and basic geometry, as well as developing vocabulary and powers of observation.
Invite children to solve problems to do with shape, space and measure by weaving them into exciting narratives featuring favourite superheros and popular picture book characters.
Try these ideas for using resources to create tangible ‘number frames’ from one to ten. Children can have fun engaging with number physically while developing key mathematical thinking skills.
Winter is nearly over and if you’ve recently done an audit of your outdoor space, you might now be thinking about giving your mud kitchen a revamp, and introducing some new resources. If you haven’t yet set up a mud kitchen, now is definitely the time to start planning one.
In this last in a series on ‘maths talk’, we look at using heuristic play to introduce shape names and terminology, and explore linked activities that encourage children to confidently use new words.
'There's no such thing as bad weather – just inappropriate clothing,' as the saying goes. Use children’s colourful winter clothing as a link to many areas of learning.
For young children, mathematical learning and development is all about the concepts of quantity, space and distance. At this early stage, the hands on exploration of these concepts is of key importance – and a Tuff Tray makes the perfect resource.
Try these easy-to-play games which will entertain children and extend their physical and communication skills, while out for a stroll.
Autumn leaves are a key sign of the changing seasons and make a colourful, accessible and versatile resource for play and exploration. The beauty of them is that at this time of the year they are available in abundance – and completely free.
Take time to make a tactile exploration of number. Claire Hewson suggests using petroleum jelly, flour and glitter to make slimy tracings and repeating patterns which children can identify and compare.
