For this activity you will need a geometric shape chart, a shape sorting box and blocks. Have the students sit in a semi-circle on the rug and use the chart to show your students how cubes, spheres and cylinders have curves, flat sides, corners and edges. Tell the students that you want to place the geometric shapes into the correct holes in the sorting box. Model finding and fitting the correct block into each hole. Invite one student at a time to come up and fit a block into the correct hole in the shape
Make graph worksheets with four squares by four squares. Place a set of four red circle stickers in the four squares in the first row, place green in the second row, blue in the third row and yellow in the fourth row, then laminate the worksheet. At circle time use a container of teddy bear counters and the graph worksheets to model sorting the bears by color. Show your students the graph and ask them what color bear counters you should put in the first row ("red"). Then find four red bears in the container and place them In the first row of the graph. Invite students to come up and sort the rest of the rows of bears correctly.
Have the class sit in a circle on the rug. Place the pocket chart at the front of the classroom and the pictures on the floor. Point to the picture on the first card and ask the students what pictures should be in the first row (e.g. "flowers"). Point to the word on the card and read "flowers." Next look for all the pictures of flowers on the rug and place them in the first row. Invite students up and continue this process until all the pictures have been sorted and placed in the correct row on the chart.
Make graph worksheets with 5 by 5 squares. Cut out 1 1/2-inch squares of red, yellow, blue, green and orange construction paper. Glue a different colored square of construction paper above each column on the worksheets then write the numbers one to five on the construction paper squares. Place the rest of the colored squares in a plastic container.
Have your students sit on the rug in a circle as you introduce this "sort and count" activity. Place your number graph worksheet on the rug along with the container of colored squares. Hold your worksheet up and ask "How many red squares do I need?" The children will see the number one on the red square and say "one." Find one red square in the container and place it in the first column of the graph. Ask your students to come up and help find the number of colored squares needed to fill the graph correctly.