Monday 4th May - Maths
Date: 4th May 2020 @ 8:40am
Good Morning Reception!
I hope you have had a lovely weekend and are ready to take part in some exciting maths learning today!
First, let’s warm up with our maths songs and today’s fluent-in-five questions!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MVzXKfr6e8&t=3s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TgLtF3PMOc&t=3s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0Ajq682yrA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGetqbqDVaA
Today we are going to be focusing our maths learning on measuring weight.
Take a listen to a catchy measurement song below. We have listened to this weight song before in reception; it’s about a big, heavy elephant!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-cjPApFuGLM
When we practise measuring weight in reception, we often have turned into ‘human balance scales.’
This is where children stand with their arms placed to the side of us with hands spread. Place an item on each hand and ask children to tip to show which item is heavier and which is lighter. Use balance scales to check the children’s estimations.
Children could also hold buckets or bags in each hand and place items inside to feel which has the stronger downward pull.
When we teach weight, we encourage children to use the language of heavy, heavier, heaviest, light, lighter, lightest to compare items. To avoid misconceptions that bigger items are always heavier, we provide some small, heavier items and some large, lighter ones. Below, I have posted some fun ideas for measurement activities at home!
Busy Bag Challenge:
Use a basket or bag to collect lots of items around your house.
Once you have found lots of items, can you sort them by weight?
Balance scales activity:
Give children an item, for example, an apple. Challenge them to find things which feel heavier and lighter than the apple and sort them into sets.
Ask children to use the balance scales to check their estimation.
Are all the heavier things larger than the apple?
Can they find anything which is larger than the apple but lighter?
Ask children to use cubes or similar objects to balance an item on one side and adding cubes until the scales balance. How many cubes are the same weight as an apple?