Part of basic math is discovering the patterns that exist in nature, in our homes, and all around us. After your preschooler can recognize shapes, she will begin to realize that shapes come in collections – patterns of circles, lines, and swirls. Identifying patterns will help children with geometry later in life. It is also an important pre-reading skill, since recognizing sight words is all about recognizing the patterns of the letters that you have seen together again and again.
How can you and your preschooler discover patterns in and around your home?
Use different sorts of dry noodles to create patterns. You can make some amazing Zen art with rotini, I’m telling you.
Use stringing beads or pop beads of various colors to create different necklace patterns. Use thick string with a lobster clasp at one end so that your child can bead and re-bead the necklaces. The fun is in the creating!
Go on a pattern hunt. Gather together scraps of wallpaper or fabric and match them together. Match florals, lines, and other fabric patterns. Create a fabric flag for your child’s room with all of the matching pieces. Go outdoors and look for objects in nature that match the wallpaper and fabric scraps too.
Go outside and gather leaves, bark, and rocks. Do crayon rubbings. Place a piece of paper on a dry object and rub across the piece of paper while pressing it on the bark, leaf, or other natural item. Try to identify the different patterns that you see in the rubbing.
Look at picture books of animal coats or books that have photos of urban objects. Try to identify the different shapes that you see. Use pieces of scrap paper to decorate a cloak or a play silk in those patterns so that your child can look like an animal too!
Discover tracks outdoors. Recognizing tracks means that you are recognizing patterns: four claws on top and a circle below, for example. You may only find dog and human tracks, but even the different tracks from boots and shoes can be fascinating. You can read about Winnie the Pooh and the Heffalump and track each other around the yard!
When you get home from your hike, use printed cookie stamps or potato stamps to squish into dough or cookies. Bake them and eat them, after placing similar patterns on different plates, of course.
Do you have any wild or relatively tame ways to explore patterns in nature and in the home?