Materials
none
Instructions
Place 10 to 20 cotton balls in the
jar, and set the jar in the math
center. Note: Vary the number of
cotton balls based on the
children's counting skills.
What To Do
1. Ask the children if they have ever made snowballs before. Talk about winter,
snow, and games the children play in the snow.
2. Show the children the jar. Ask the children to pretend that the cotton balls are
snowballs. Ask each child to estimate how many "snowballs" are in the jar.
Write down the children's estimates.
3. Once each child has had a chance to respond, count the snowballs together to
see whose guess was the closest.
Teacher - to - Teacher Tip
l For added fun, you can use other props such as a snow hat or a toy sleigh to
hold the "snowballs."
s o n g
Ten Little Snowballs by Laura Wynkoop
(Tune: "Bumping Up and Down in My Little Red Wagon")
One little, two little, three little snowballs,
Four little, five little, six little snowballs,
Seven little, eight little, nine little snowballs,
Ten snowballs melting away!
Assessment
To assess the children's learning, consider the following:
l How accurate are the children's estimates about the number of snowballs in
the jar?
l Can the children count the snowballs individually?
