Materials
- paper towel rolls
- scissors
- paintbrushes
- tempera paint
- paper
- pencil
- string
- hole punch
What to do
1. Cut the paper towels rolls in half. Make a pair of treasure-hunting binoculars for each child by gluing two halves of a paper towel roll together side by side.
2. After the glue dries, the children can paint their binoculars. When the paint is dry, punch a hole toward the outside top edge of each of the two rolls.
3. Lace string through the holes and tie a knot so the children can wear the binoculars around their necks. The children are ready to use their binoculars on a treasure hunt walk.
4. Have the children look through their binoculars and look for "treasures" (flowers, rocks, leaves, and so on).
5. Ask the children how many treasures they can see. Take notes on your paper.
6. When you get back to the classroom, chart what you saw.
7. Talk about whether you could count everything you found. Were there too many rocks, trees, and so on to count?
-Monica Hay Cook, Tucson, AZ