No Muss, No Fuss, No Clean-Up: Fun Geometry and Communication Activity

Looking for another easy, low-cost, no clean-up activity? How about one that improves kids' communication AND geometry skills? Check this out!  Have your child draw a simple picture like the one shown here.  It requires little artistic ability from the child, which means there shouldn't be any stress involved.

 When she's finished drawing, DON'T LOOK at the image.  Instead, get your own sheet of blank paper and sit with your back facing her.  Her job is to describe to you her drawing in enough detail and geometric and positional language that you can draw your own version of her original image. 

For instance, she might start out by saying, "Draw a circle".  Well, without having seen the original, you may pick up the pink marker and draw a huge circle that takes up the entire page.  What she'll soon see is that she needs to say something like, "Draw a small gray circle with a black circumference."  Then she has to convey to you that there is a purplish-blue triangle hanging from the bottom left side of the circle.  But, she'll have to let you know that it is an equilateral triangle, as opposed to a bottom-pointing isosceles triangle or something else.  She also have to let you know that the triangle is similarly sized to the circle.  Next, she'll have to use her language to get you to draw the kite/diamond and the floating orange pentagon.

You can make up your own rules, such as the listening artist is allowed 5 clarifying questions, or the original artist is allowed to peak at the listening artist's work as it's being drawn so she can be more exact with her descriptions.
 
The possibilities are absolutely endless, and there's no reason multiple kids couldn't participate in this, if you're needing a little break.  One child could still be the original artist and a whole group of kids could be the listening artists.  Have fun! And, as always, happy learning!

Bubble Geometry

What kid doesn't like blowing bubbles? What teacher doesn't love it too?  Why? Because there is so much math embedded in this seemingly fun-only activity.  We all know kids learn more when they're having fun, so throw in this secret geometry lesson while your kids are blowing their hearts out!!

The object, of course, is to blow the biggest bubble.  Let your kids experiment with different shaped bubble-makers (homemade or store bought).  They can use wire coat hangers, string, or the wands that come with the bubble solution.  Here's the math part.  Once the bubbles pop, use the bubble ring that's left on the sidewalk and have a quick talk with your kids about the diameter, radius and circumference.  (See the definitions below for your refresher course.)  Get the rulers out and have your kids measure each of the three for each bubble they blow.  Have them make their own data sheets to keep the records straight. 

If you have multiple kids, you can make it a competition or have them work together in a team effort (which life lesson will you choose today?); if you have one child, see if he can "beat" his record with each successive bubble.  What improvements can your kids add to increase the size of their bubbles?

Your kids' math teachers will love you and your kids will be having so much fun, they'll do all the math you want just to keep making the biggest bubble! It's most definitely a win-win!

DIAMETER:    any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle  (remember, the line segment has to start and end on the circle AND PASS THROUGH THE CENTER POINT)

RADIUS:  any line segment from its center or axis of symmetry to its perimeter  (think of this like a spoke on a wheel; the line segment has to have one end point on the center of the circle and one endpoint on the circle itself)

CIRCUMFERENCE: the perimeter (or distance) around the circle; you calculate this by (C=πd) OR (C=2*π*r)     (π = 3.1415)

Other ways you can embed math in this lesson:
- have your kids measure in centimeters and inches
- have your kids find the difference between each bubble's measurements
- have your kids research WHY bubbles are always spherical no matter what shape the wand is

Happy blowing!

It's Raining, It's Pouring....It's Math Time

It's raining here with no signs of letting up -- what a perfect day to do some math! As a teacher, I absolutely love(d) the NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics) website called Illuminations.  This site is full (absolutely exploding) with math games, ideas, objectives, activities for all ages and all math strands.  If your child needs extra help in algebra, there's a game/activity.  If geometry stumps your child, no problem -- they've got you covered.  And, when I say all ages, I truly mean, all ages.  We tend to think of Pythagorean theorem when we hear geometry, but don't forget that even preschoolers are practicing their geometry skills when they sort shapes and put them into patterns.  I highly, highly recommend this site to fellow moms, dads, teachers, whomever.  It's safe, free and educational.

Here's a screen shot of just one of the many activities: "Pan Balance - Shapes" -- a wonderfully rich activity that introduces kids to algebraic thinking without them even knowing it!  You definitely want to read each activities rules and explanations before playing and as always, you want to make sure your child is properly supervised.  This game's gist is as follows:  I learn that 2 red squares are the same "weight" as 1 blue circle.  In the next round, I learn that 2 red squares and 1 purple triangle are equivalent to 1 blue circle and 3 yellow diamonds.  From there, I can continue to figure out the value of each shape. I get to pick which shapes I place on which of the two balances and deduce their values from the results.  Amazing, isn't it?