Using timber offcuts and other household items, you can make your own DIY stamps. It is a great invitation to play and explore different shapes and colours. Use objects of different shapes and sizes to create various printed patterns. Glue them to small blocks of wood. Prepare some child-safe water based paint. In this instance, I let Alex explore different shades of the same colour – yellow. Provide a large paper/cardboard for them to create their artwork.
This activity allows Alex to practice his vocabulary to compare different shades of yellow. I showed him appropriate use of words such as light, lighter, darkest, lightest, darker, dark, and so on. It also encourages him to talk about shapes and different patterns he is creating. Counting the patterns created is also opportunity for him to practice his early math skills.
A question I often get from parents is when do we start teaching Mathematics to our children? In most cases you can start introducing early math concepts to children as early as one year old. Our daily routines, such as play, meals and bath times, can be opportunities for early math and its associated language. Talking about the size of the the classic doughnut rings toys when you stack them, counting the number of objects in the bath or amount of juice in a cup would provide starting points for understanding size, number and volume. Rhymes and songs are also rich in mathematical opportunities such as “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” develop an understanding of the positional word “up” and the geometric shape “diamond”.
Materials:
- Plates or open containers
- Child-safe water based paint
- Small pieces of timber
- Glue gun
- Cut up cardboard tubes
- Mini popsicle sticks
- Square shaped rubbers
- Tinsels
- Large cardboard paper
Instructions:
- Glue each material into individual wooden pieces using a glue gun
- Prepare different shades of colour on open plate
- Prepare a large piece of paper/cardboard
- Note: you could made a homemade paint for your toddler who still like to eat things, by using yoghurt and add some food colouring or by mixing some plain flour and some food colouring with a little bit of water.
Busy Little Bunnies 