When teaching preschool math I often use the classic picture books by Ellen Stoll Walsh. One of my favorite stories is Balancing Act.
Last week, I noticed many of our learners understood the concepts more and less, but struggled with same or equal. As we explored this topic we talked about a seesaw, then read and acted out the book Balancing Act.
This week I was thrilled to see our inventive children using an old wooden board as a seesaw. As they stood on each side we talked about weight, size and quantity. We remembered what it meant to be balanced.
Then, we brought the outdoor materials inside.
Using simply an old wooden board, round tree stump, and river rocks, the children continued to practice balancing the makeshift seesaw. They experimented with the amount of rocks, the size of the rocks, and even the location on the board.
As new children joined in we saw the materials become incorporated into their block play.
At Home: Try using similar materials to create a simple seesaw. Find loose parts to balance. Talk about equivalence: size and quantity.
