Materials
white sockspink felt circlesblack felt ovals, triangles, and small circlesglue
Instructions
1. Help the children make cow puppets using white socks. Each child glues on a pink felt circle for the nose, black felt ovals for eyes, black triangles for ears, and small black circles for body spots. Note:You can also make puppets using white paper plates; pink paper circles; black paper ovals, triangles, and circles; and craft sticks to make handles.
2. Review counting to the target number you have chosen for this lesson.
3. Children stand in two designated areas with their puppets one area on the right and one on the left with an empty common area in the middle.
4. Children count to add or subtract the number of cows as you call out children's names to come to the common area. For example, Susie is on the right side. When you call her to common area the class counts "one." Then call two more children. The class counts "two, three" for the total number in the center. You can also make large +, to , and = signs for the children to hold to illustrate the process.
5. This activity provides a visual portrayal of 1 + 2 = 3.
6. Children in the center can also illustrate subtraction. For example, after the class counts to three in the above example, Susie might return to her original spot, and 3 to 1 = 2 is shown. Related fingerplay: Invite the children to hold up fingers to show the numbers mentioned in the following original rhyme:How many cows do I see?I see one, two, three!Wait! There's a tail; here comes one more.That makes one, two, three, four!Here come four more, just a little late.They're numbers five, six, seven, eight!Two are missing; where have they been?Here they come, numbers nine and ten!
