Teach children about measurement using alternative units of measurement--their hands and fingers. Children can make a "ruler" using fingerprints. Provide each child with finger paint in two different colors and a rectangular sheet of card stock for the "ruler." Have children use their index fingers and print alternating color fingerprints vertically up the edge of the card stock ruler. Once the prints are dry, have children use the ruler to find various items measuring a certain length; for example, an eraser might measure two prints and a book could measure nine prints.
Teach students addition to 10 with a hands-on activity. Provide each child with two large ladybug cutouts, a sheet of white card stock and black finger paint. Tell the children to make 10 finger prints on the card stock. Once the prints have dried, instruct the children to cut them out carefully using safety scissors. The fingerprints will represent the ladybug dots. Using both ladybugs, have the children experiment to see how many different ways they can distribute the dots on the backs of the ladybugs, to add up to 10. For example, they might place two dots on one bug and eight on the other, or five dots on each bug.
Children can create a poster board display for the classroom. Write the outline for number words up to 10 or 20 and the corresponding numeral for each word on a separate poster board, then task the students to decorate each number and word with fingerprints. Use a different color finger paint for each word and number combination. Children should decorate inside the outlines with fingerprints in different colors. Use the same color for each number and word combination to facilitate easy recognition.
Teach kindergartners the concept of one-to-one matching by creating a wall display. This can be an extension to the fingerprint art activity or a standalone exercise. Draw several large jars on plain paper. Each jar represents a number. Have children use finger paints to print objects inside the jar that correspond to the jar's number. For example, children could print six bugs (each with six legs) inside the number six jar. For the number three jar, the students could create three fingerprint flowers inside the jar. For the number two jar, children might print two fingerprint hearts inside the jar. Encourage the children to be creative while learning that each object represents one unit. Cut out the jars and display them alongside the word or numeral for the corresponding number of objects in the jar.