This activity promotes shape identification and introduces the pre-math skill of sorting. On separate pieces of paper, draw individual shapes--a square, a rectangle, a circle and a star, for example. Lay the pieces of paper out on the floor. Set a mixed up pile of different shapes on the floor--use different shaped blocks, foam shapes, cut out shapes or any other items that feature a variety of different shapes. Discuss the different shapes and have children help you sort through the piles, placing the different shaped item on the correct piece of paper.
Have children make a letter collage. Present a new letter to children--B for example. After discussing the sound the letter makes, instruct children to create a collage of beans. Print an upper- and lowercase letter B on a piece of paper. Provide children with craft glue and a paintbrush. Show them how to dip their paintbrushes into the glue and trace the letters. Once their letters are covered in glue, show them how to glue beans onto the different letters. This activity can be done for every letter of the alphabet, changing the item being glued on to match the sound each letter makes--glitter for G, seeds for S, apple-shaped confetti for A and so on.
Help children learn how to spell their names with this activity. Write each child's name on a piece of paper. Provide children with a bin of alphabet letters. Have the children trace the letters of their name with a crayon or marker. After tracing their names, have them sort through the magnetic letters to find the letters in their names, placing the correct magnetic letter on the correct letter.
Promote one-to-one correspondence with this activity. On a piece of paper, write out different numbers. Under each number, draw dots that correspond to the written number--one dot for the number one, two dots for the number two and so forth. Provide children with a stamp and a stamp pad. Instruct them to place a stamp on each dot under the number, counting as they stamp.