In my classroom I typically sit at the math table. I plan games and activities with specific math teaching points in mind. Last week, one of my co-teachers was sick and I found myself at the art table working with children on a provocation using natural materials and clay. While we worked to create, we told stories and described the attributes of our creations. Through these conversations, rich math talk came naturally.
NAEYC & NCTM (2010) recommend we “Integrate mathematics with other activities and other activities with mathematics.
Sometimes we plan activities with one idea in mind, but are surprised where it takes us. For this Playful Invitation I invite you to see the math in open-ended art activities.
1. Prepare: Gather an assortment of natural materials, (leaves, pinecones, rocks, shells, acorns, etc.) and clay.
Use the Invitation to Play Documentation Tool to collect data.
2. Invite: I wonder what you can create using these materials.
3. Play: observe as the child chooses materials and creates a sculpture. As they work, create along side the child, or follow their lead and talk about the things they notice about their creation.
Ask questions about shape, size, and quantity.
For example, one child I worked with was trying to fit as many items on his sculpture as possible. We estimated how many he used, counted, and guessed how many more would fit. When he was finished he took away each item until the clay was nearly empty.
Another child noticed that the materials could be used to make shapes in the clay. The tree slices created circles, the corks were cylinders they could roll, and the shells and milkweed pods made “pointy shapes, like a triangle.” And finally, a girl talked with me about size of her “tiny” boat and guessed how many acorns would fit in a real boat!
4. Reflect and Assess: What words did the child use to describe their creation? What math language and concepts were you able to introduce? If you did this activity another time what types of objects might you plan to include.
Resources:
A joint position statement of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM). Adopted in 2002. Updated in 2010.