Going Away (pages 16 and 17)
- After discussing the situations on these pages, give your child a set of objects to help him or her solve the same equations and make up more.
- Put five objects on a table. Ask your child to count the objects. Then cover the objects with a towel or piece of paper so your child won't see how many objects you take away. Remove the cover, and help your child figure out how many objects you took away.
- You can use a set of objects to explore the relationship between subtraction and addition, too. After taking two objects away, ask, "How many will there be if I bring the two back?"
Using objects and pictures to solve math problems is a great way to help children begin to understand the concept of numbers.
*Mathematics: Number & Operations (Develops increased abilities to combine, separate, and name "how many" concrete objects.) *Approaches to Learning: Reasoning & Problem Solving (Develops increasing abilities to classify, compare, and contrast objects, events, and experiences.)
Spice Up Some Play Dough (pages 20 and 21)
- Your child can help measure and pour all the ingredients into the pot.
- When you cook the mixture, be sure to use medium heat, and stir constantly.
When children cook, they learn how we read for information and experience how and why we measure ingredients. In this recipe, they also discover how a mixture changes when it is heated and how they can help make an often-used play material at home.
*Literacy: Print Awareness & Concepts (Develops growing understanding of the different functions of forms of print such as signs, letters, newspapers, lists, recipes, messages, and menus.) *Science: Scientific Knowledge (Shows increased awareness and beginning understanding of changes in materials and cause-effect relationships.)
I'm a Papa, Too (pages 28 to 31)
- Before reading the story, ask your child to describe what's happening in each picture.
- After reading the story, help your child use the pictures to retell the story.
- Ask your child to describe other things that dads might do and that the boy could do as well.
Imitating grown-ups is a regular theme in young children's dramatic play. This story could be used to spark a discussion about what kids might do in the dramatic-play area of a classroom or with the "dress-up" box at home.
*Literacy: Book Knowledge & Appreciation (Demonstrates progress in abilities to retell and dictate stories from books and experiences, to act out stories in dramatic play, and to predict what will happen next in a story.) *Creative Arts: Dramatic Play (Participates in a variety of dramatic play activities that become more extended and complex.)
*Early-childhood standards based on the U.S. Head Start Child Outcomes Framework.