Children will naturally be showing an interest in and developing an understanding of the concepts of 'full' and 'empty' as they play in the nursery. Daily or weekly routines will also include many appropriate moments for talking about these ideas - for example, at snack and meal times, when tidying away equipment into baskets and during baking sessions.
Basic areas such as sand and water are particularly rich in opportunities for exploring ideas related to capacity, but the enhancements to basic provision suggested below may offer children additional opportunities to extend their play and learning in this phase of mathematical development.
However, although the focus throughout this project is on a particular aspect of mathematical learning, we must always remember that children approach learning holistically. The activities and experiences planned will also be a vehicle for other learning and an opportunity for the individual child to pursue their own agenda.
Adult-led activity
Shake, rattle and roll
Make shakers with children and have fun exploring the different sounds they make.
Key learning intentions
To discriminate between different sounds and to explore rhythm
To begin to understand the concept of full and empty
To begin using mathematical language related to measurement of capacity
To explore materials using appropriate senses
Adult:child ratio 1:4
Resources
A collection of small plastic or card containers with lids, for example, small margarine tubs, drums containing food powders or granules, plastic film canisters (ensure that they are cleaned thoroughly before use) ,a range of materials such as sand, rice, lentils, salt, gravel, cumin seeds ,tape ,plastic bowls ,small scoops and teaspoons
Preparation
* Designate an area for the activity to take place. This should be a quiet area so that children can easily hear the sounds they are creating.
* Make sure that the children have experience of playing with maracas and other musical instruments.
* Involve practitioners and parents in collecting containers over a period of time.
Activity content
* Invite interested children to explore the materials you have provided.
Allow plenty of time for them to handle, look at and smell the materials.
Encourage them to comment on their observations.
* Show the children the containers and work alongside them selecting materials to put into their chosen container.
* Talk with them about the most effective ways of creating a shaker and encourage them to experiment with different materials and amounts in their containers.
* Support them with technical skills as necessary - for example, securing the lid with tape.
* As the shakers are completed, encourage the children to experiment with the sounds that they can make, for example, by shaking or rolling their shaker, and to listen to other children's shakers. Suggest that they play their shaker at the same time as another child and talk about the effects of combining the sounds.
* Encourage the children to shake their instrument (or tap it against their other hand) along to the steady beat of your handclap. Make up a simple jingle to chant to the beat - for example, 'Shaker, shaker, tapping on my hand, Shaker, shaker, playing in our band.'
Extending learning
Key vocabulary
Full, empty, half full/empty, more less, big, bigger, small, smaller, loud, quiet
Questions to ask
* Is your tub full?
* How many spoonfuls did it take to fill your tub?
* If you take out three scoopfuls, do you think it will be empty?
* How do you know when your container is full/empty?
* What will happen if we don't put a lid on the shaker?
* Does it make a better sound when it is full or half-full?
* Which material makes the loudest sound?
Extension ideas
* Play each shaker behind a screen and encourage the children to guess whose shaker is making the sound they hear.
* Try filling metal containers with materials to create a different shaker sound.
* Make 'silent shakers' with the children and provide a visually stimulating experience. Collect plastic bottles with lids (again, make sure that they have been cleaned thoroughly) and fill them with water (coloured with food colouring) and materials such as sequins, glitter and coloured sand. The shaker lids may need securing with waterproof tape.
* Introduce the work of Patrick Caulfield to children, particularly his paintings such as 'Glazed earthenware' (1976), 'Oh! Helen, I roam my room'
(1970), 'Pottery' (1969) and 'Sweet bowl' (1967), which depict full and empty containers.
Child-initiated learning
Water area
Additional resources and adult support
* Provide a range of transparent or translucent containers and plastic bottles of differing shapes and sizes.
* Observe the children's play and, if appropriate, investigate alongside them modelling key vocabulary such as 'full' and 'empty'. Where the children are deeply involved, interactions from an adult may be unwelcome and their need to pursue solitary or collaborative (with other children) investigations should be respected.
* Offer funnels and tubes to add further interest to filling and emptying experiments.
* Add food colouring to the water to enable the children to identify water levels more easily. Ask questions to extend the children's thinking - for example, 'Do you think the water level will go up or down if we pour some water out?' or 'Where do you think the water level will be if we pour in another jugful?'
* Provide waterproof tape and support the children in marking the levels on the side of a container when, for example, one, two and three scoopfuls of water are poured in. With the children, compare water levels when one scoopful is poured into containers of varying sizes.
* Make holes at varying levels in some of the plastic bottles so water squirts out of the hole at that level. Talk with the children about what is happening and ask challenging questions such as, 'Why doesn't the bottle get full even though we are pouring in more and more water?'
Play possibilities
* Pouring water from one container to another, filling and emptying
* Counting and estimating measured amounts of water and talking about water levels
* Mixing food colouring into water
* Pretending to make and serve drinks - for example, fruit juices when the water is coloured red or orange
Possible learning outcomes
Becomes very absorbed in own play and learning
Makes independent choices of play areas and activities
Uses language to communicate thoughts and ideas
Explores the concept of capacity and non-standard measurement
Asks questions about why things happen
Demonstrates increasing control in using play equipment
Uses one material to represent another
Dry sand area
Additional resources and adult support
* Provide a collection of small-scale kitchen utensils and containers (available in most hardware stores) such as ladles, jugs, bowls, spoons, strainers/sieves, graded measuring pans, scoops.
* Talk with the children about the possible uses of the utensils, making connections with home cooking and food preparation experiences. Discuss the difference in size between these kitchen tools and the ones they see at home. Show children full-sized utensils to support them in making size comparisons. Model and encourage the use of language related to size.
* Provide individual trays of coloured sand on a nearby table in addition to the large sand tray included in basic provision.
* Work with the children using the small-scale utensils and allowing them to initiate the play themes.
* To extend the children's play and learning, provide small jugs of water while ensuring that dry materials are still available for those children engaged in ongoing investigations. Ask the children what they think will happen when they add water to the dry materials, and encourage them to talk about their observations.
* Offer additional dry materials for the children to use in the trays and, where they choose to do so, enable them to mix materials - for example, lentils and salt. Ask questions such as, 'Why do you think the salt goes through the strainer but the lentils don't?', 'It takes four scoops of sand to fill the jug, how many scoops of salt do you think it will take to fill the same jug?', 'If you pour the lentils from the jug to the bowl, do you think the bowl will be full?'
Play possibilities
* Handling materials, finding out about properties and textures
* Mixing dry materials together and mixing dry materials with water
* Exploring and experimenting with utensils
* Filling and emptying containers using different methods, such as spoon to jug, jug to bowl
* Pretending to bake or prepare meals
* Making links with other areas of provision (for example, food preparation for a party in the home corner) and connections in learning (for example, continuing explorations of 'full' and 'empty' following play in the water area).
Possible learning outcomes
Persists for long periods at a self- chosen activity
Talks activities through, reflecting and connecting ideas
Uses language such as 'big', 'bigger', 'small' and 'smaller' to describe and compare size
Talks about features of materials and purposes of tools
Comments on the changes that take place when materials are mixed together
Manipulates small utensils effectively to fill and empty containers
Engages in imaginative and role-play based on first-hand experiences
Plays alongside other children who are engaged in the same theme
Outdoor area
Additional resources and adult support
* Provide buckets and watering cans.
* Where there is an outdoor tap, encourage the children to fill their own buckets and cans. Where this facility is unavailable, provide water in a larger bucket or tray. Talk with the children about safe ways of carrying heavy buckets and cans, introducing appropriate mathematical language.
* Provide water trays at different levels and offer lengths of plastic guttering and fall pipe.
* Provide a variety of materials such as compost, different grades of sand and gravel.
* Designate a trough, or area of the garden, for 'free digging'. Provide spades, trowels and plastic plant pots.
* Provide lengths of rope and monitor the children's use of these.
* Where necessary when introducing new equipment, or the children engage in new activities, draw up a risk assessment and share it with the team.
Play possibilities
* Digging in the garden and watering plants; filling and emptying plant pots
* Monitoring rainfall in buckets and trays left outside during the day and overnight
* Creating waterways and using pipe systems to transport water and fill containers
* Using ropes to create pulley systems for buckets, such as by throwing one end of the rope over a low tree branch or wooden frame, attaching the bucket to the other end and hoisting up by pulling on the loose end.
Possible learning outcomes
Has a positive approach to new learning
Works co-operatively with others
Uses language such as 'heavy', 'heavier', 'full', 'half-full' and 'empty'
to describe and compare quantities
Uses developing mathematical ideas to solve problems
Talks about what is seen and what is happening
Manoeuvres large or heavy equipment safely and showing an awareness of space