This lesson is excerpted from Play & Learn with Cereal O's. Download the lesson PDF here.
This exciting project combines counting practice with a hands-on building activity!
What You Need:
Fifty-five cereal O’s in a bowl, large marshmallows, toothpicks, plain paper or construction paper, colored markers, scissors, ruler
To Prepare:
Cut ten 2- by 3-inch pieces of paper to make Number Slips.
Write the numbers 1–10 at the bottoms of the slips.
Activity:
Demonstrate, then have your child follow these steps:
Place the ten Number Slips consecutively on a table, leaving spaces between them.
Set one marshmallow on each Number Slip. Stick a toothpick in the top of each marshmallow. (Be sure to supervise her with the toothpicks.)
Drop one cereal O onto the toothpick on Number Slip 1. Say, “One.” Stack two cereal O’s on the toothpick on Number Slip 2. As you drop them say, “One, two. Two.” Put three cereal O’s on the toothpick on Number Slip 3. As you drop them say, “One, two, three. Three.” Continue stacking in like manner until all the cereal O’s have been placed.
Count across 1–10, pointing to each set.
Variation 1:
Place the cereal O’s next to each other on the Number Slips without using marshmallows and toothpicks.
Variation 2:
Stack the cereal O’s on the Number Slips without using marshmallows and toothpicks. Building cereal O’s ten high is very difficult, so once you stack five, begin a second pile of five.