Throughout the early years of life, children notice and explore mathematical dimensions of their world. They compare quantities, find patterns, navigate in space, and grapple with real problems such as balancing a tall block building or sharing toys fairly with a playmate.

Math­ematics helps children make sense of their world outside of school and helps them construct a solid foundation for success in school.

In our classroom, we use play and sensory experiences (in addition to more direct academic approaches) to relay these integral math concepts to your little ones.

This activity involved stacking egg carton turtles onto one another in this Yertle the Tertle activity. In the story, Yertle commands the turtles of Sala-ma-Sond to pile onto each other so that Yertle could grab the moon.

The very act of stacking presented a host of counting opportunities for our class, so we put our learning into action! Students were first directed to stack their turtles.

This was a bit tricky, as it required them to focus. Doing so enabled them to witness the magic of cause and effect. Once fully stacked, students were then urged to count their pile.

Following the mastery of this task, students broke their piles into smaller groups and counted them as well!