Fall offers great opportunities for learning and playing with math. The CORNY MATH booklet assists children with counting, estimation, prediction, and “non-standard” measuring skills (along with a few drawing/writing/pre-writing activities).
CORNY MATH – CORNY FACTS
Materials needed: One Printable Corny Facts Booklet (per child/small group), a Paper Bag, Super Wikki Stix, Field Corn to Shell, Markers or Crayons, and a Tray or Table for Counting the Corn Kernels.
To begin: Secretly place the field corn in a paper bag and fold it closed. Play “20 Questions” with the children to see if the children can guess what “mystery” item is inside the closed bag. Designate someone to make tally marks to keep track of how many questions the children ask before identifying what item is inside the bag. Have the children write the number of questions asked on the line provided in the booklet.
Pages 3 and 4 of the booklet ask the children to use Wikki Stix as a “non-standard” measuring tool. Pre-cut several different lengths of Super Wikki Stix for use in estimating the length and diameter of an ear of corn.
Acquiring estimation skills for measurement is a challenging concept for kids! The children must make a good guess to find the length of Wikki Stix that would approximately measure the field corn. Discuss with the children how to make good predictions by measuring some other items at home or in the classroom with Wikki Stix.
Our kids measured the size of different playground balls with Wikki Stix for perspective. We found the balls were LARGER than the ears of corn. It would follow that the ears of corn would take LESS Wikki Stix for measuring than the balls did – our prediction was CORRECT!
Have the children measure their ears of corn and complete the questions on the pages of the booklet!
Counting Kernels by 10’s
We shelled the corn and counted the kernels into groups of ten. Have the children count the groups and write the sum on the blank line provided in the booklet. For younger children, have the children count by 1’s, 2’s, or 5’s.
Discuss with the children what they might make or do with the corn kernels. Some of our children chose to take the kernels home to feed to the squirrels. Other children made flower art with the corn kernels. What will your children do with their kernels of corn? Help younger children write down ideas in the booklet (or they can simply draw a picture in the blank space provided).
Pre-writing Activity: the last page of the booklet is a pre-writing activity for younger children. Have the children use Super Wikki Stix to make different line paths for the squirrel to get to the ear of corn. Older children may wish to make a maze design and use Wikki Stix to complete the path through the maze!
The Corny Facts Booklet is a fun way to incorporate harvest explorations into your classroom or home! We hope your kids enjoy it as much as ours do!
For Harvest Crafts for Kids to Make (or give), visit the Wikki Stix Blog!
For MORE Fall Theme or Wikki Stix Activities, visit the The Preschool Toolbox Blog!