Janet Houk | Minneha Elementary | Wichita, Kansas
In this activity, the teacher and students match written numbers to the number of beans counted. This shows the students how numbers relate to real things. Each day, the class writes and discusses one number, after awhile the children have a book of numbers. Finally, written numbers are matched to cards with dots to reinforce that numbers relate to real things.
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Hello, I would like to show you one way that I teach number symbols and counting to the students in my early childhood classroom. To begin with, we’ve been practicing counting for several days now, and I am ready to introduce the numbers, the actual numerals that represent those amounts. So, this is one way I would do it, I have my counters and today we’re using pinto beans, and I would say boys and girls let’s count to four. Count with me, one, two, three, four. How many are in my group today boys and girls, in my row? Four. And then, I would show them the number four. Boys and girls, this is the number four. When we have four beans, this is how we show that on a piece of paper. This is the number four. Then we would continue to count. We would count, maybe I might say boys and girls let’s count to six. One, two, three, four, five, six. How many beans are there boys and girls? Six. And, when you have six beans this is the number you use. This is the way we write six. And, I would continue on, in this mode for several numbers. And, then I would take one number specifically, each day. The first day of course I’m going to start with the number one, then two. I’m going to go all the way to twenty, and we are going to practice counting them. We are going to practice writing them. If you don’t like the cards that stand up, many times I have my students lay the card down and they’ll put six on top of the number six. They can do this in small groups, they can do it with partners, they can do it independently. Now, the fun part, I would create a poster numbered one to twenty, one being the bottom, and we would put the number one, and we would talk about things we can draw. After I put like one dot, or one tally, or one flower, or one X on my chart, I would give the children a paper with a one. They trace the number one, and the number word, one. And, they get to draw whatever, one object, of whatever they like on their paper. Then, when we do day two, we continue, and they trace the word, the number, and they trace the number word. Then, we draw two of their favorite things, and that continues. And, by the time we’re done at the twenty, we have a book of counting. Plus, it’s a book of our favorite things. As an assessment tool, I might use my dots cards. Have the children count the dots cards and match it with a picture. This is one way that I teach the children in my early childhood classroom to connect counting and numbers, the actual symbols.
