Integrated Activities and Teaching Strategies in Mathematics (Colors)

Rationale

Teachers teach best what they need to learn. The teacher’s responsibility is not just to teach, but to learn, and never cease to learn. It is vital, therefore, that teachers constantly reinvent themselves in order to maintain their effectiveness. Mathematics is often mislabeled as a difficult subject, thus, it has always been a challenge to educators to plan and implement a teaching technique that makes learning enjoyable and engaging for children.

Incorporating fun and integrating mathematics in other subject areas would provide teachers a refreshing way of teaching the basic mathematical concepts.

Weaving a Web of Learning

Integrating Mathematics with other subject areas is one way of assuring that children will enjoy learning, and that learning takes place at its optimum level. Mathematics can be taught across different subject areas such as Science, Music and Creative Dramatics, Arts and Crafts, Speaking, Reading, Writing, P.E. and Health, Values, and even Cooking!

Lesson Plan Web

Specifically for this module, a web plan is made for specific themes such as Colors, Shapes, and Numbers. The children will discover the joy of learning new concepts through thematic teaching, which is the natural way to integrate curriculum content areas.

[This article will first discuss Colors as its theme]

COLORS

1.   This is a no-lose variation of this classic game with your children. Select a piece of white paper and draw a red circle on one side and a green one on the other. Show the paper and see if they have any ideas about what the circles might mean. Help them conclude that the red circle means “stop” and the green one means “go”. Then invite the children to pretend that they are cars: when you hold up the green light, they drive around; when you hold up the red light, they stop. (P.E./Social Studies) 
2.   Collect a few red (or any color) items and place them in a pillowcase. Seat the children in a group and begin to tell a story. Choose a child to come and select one item from the pillowcase. Incorporate the item into the story. Choose another child and continue until all the items have been selected. (Language)
3.  Sing to the tune of “Three Blind Mice”:

 

I Like Red 

I like red, I like red

Do you like it too? Do you like it too?

Red is the color of strawberries

As well as apples and some cherries

Did you ever see such a color, my friend

As red, red, red?

I like blue, I like blue

Do you like it too? Do you like it too?

Blue is the color of oceans and skies

Brand-new jeans and some birds I spy

Did you ever see such a color so true

As blue, blue, blue?

I like yellow, I like yellow

Do you like it too? Do you like it too?

Yellow is sunny that’s oh so bright

Yellow’s the color of the moon at night

Yellow shines and yellow glows

That is yellow.

I like green, I like green

Do you like it too? Do you like it too?

Green is the grass and the leaf of a tree

Lilies and frogs that croak at me

Green is the color of vines with beans

It’s green, green, green.

I like orange, I like orange

Do you like it too? Do you like it too?

A carrot is orange and pumpkins, too

The sun in my paper that I drew

A fruit tree with an orange or two.

That is orange.

I like brown, I like brown

Do you like it too? Do you like it too?

Brown is the color of chocolates

Coffee cups and morning toasts

And what do you think of our skin?

It’s brown, brown, brown.

I like pink, I like pink

Do you like it too? Do you like it too?

Baby cheeks and tongues are pink

Flowers and cotton candies

And what do you think of powdered cheeks?

Pink, pink, pink.

I like violet, I like violet

Do you like it too? Do you like it too?

Yams and eggplants are violet

Orchids and grapes as well

The color I see when I bruise my thumb

It’s violet, violet.

4.   Make a simple color graph on a large sheet of paper, enough to fit in a bulletin board or for everyone to see. Cut out small squares from construction paper that matches the colors named on the chart. Have each child paste a square of his or her favorite color on the chart. (Math)

When the chart is complete, discuss the results:

• Which color is the most popular?
• Which color is the least popular?
• Which color(s) is/are not liked by anyone?
• How many people like each of the colors?
• How many people like ____ than ____?

5.   Prepare three large transparent jars, water, red, blue, & yellow coloring, and large spoons or sticks for stirring. Fill the jars with water. Put a few drops of yellow food coloring in the first jar. Take time in doing this as children will enjoy the swirl design the food coloring makes as it mixes with the water. Add red food coloring to the yellow water a few drops at a time until the water is colored orange. Repeat the steps above, mixing red and blue food coloring to make purple, and yellow and blue coloring to make green. (Science)
6.   Prepare a neighborhood (community) map. Outline streets, buildings, trees, parks, and so on with black marker or crayon. In one corner of the map, create a color key. Let children decide on appropriate colors for landmarks. (Social Studies)

Example:

Streets – gray

Houses – purple

Buildings – yellow

Parks – green

Bodies of water – blue

 

7.   Prepare plain white paper towels (or white table napkins), bowls, food coloring – 3-4 colors. Put water in each bowl and add enough food coloring to produce an intense color. Fold the paper towel into eighths or sixteenths. Dip each corner of the folded towel into different colors of food coloring. Unfold the paper towel to reveal a beautiful tie-dyed design. When these lovely designs are dry, hang them in the window or on a clothesline strung across the classroom. (Art)
8.   Using different colors of construction paper, cut out large simple shapes that match the following characters: brown bear, goldfish, red rooster, blue bird, yellow duck, green frog, purple cat, white dog, and black sheep. Include, too, the shapes of little children and a teacher. You may add outlines and a few details on the shapes so the children can recognize them more easily. Each character must be glued on a small white paper sheet or cardboard. Each paper has these familiar words: (Reading and Language)

Brown bear, brown bear, what do you see?

I see an orange fish looking at me.

Orange fish, orange fish, what do you see?

I see a red rooster looking at me.

[Red rooster…]

[Blue bird…]

[Yellow duck…]

[Green frog…]

[Purple cat…]

[White dog…]

Black sheep, black sheep, what do you see?

I see a teacher looking at me.

Teacher, teacher, what do you see?

I see boys and girls looking at me!

 

9.   Give each child a piece of white paper and several blue (or any other color) circle stickers. Let the children attach these stickers to their papers at random. Then let them use blue (that same color) crayons or markers to connect the dots any way they wish. When the children have finished, talk about the various blue (that color) designs they created. (Writing)
10.   Make a matching game for the children to play. Gather several shades of blue (or any other color) paper. Cut each shade into two, then mix up all the pieces. Let the children take turns sorting the pieces by color into matching games. As a variation, let the children take turns arranging them in order from the lightest to the darkest or vice-versa. (P.E./Math)
11.   Prepare a white paper cup for each child by drawing a large smiling face on the side of each cup. Fill the cups to the top with potting soil. Then give them to the children along with some mongo or grass seeds. Have each child plant and water the seeds and set their cups in a sunny spot. After their seeds begin to grow, it will look like green hair on top of the smiling cup. (Science)

 

REFERENCES:

Puzzles and Games for Reading and Math, Susan Amerikaner & Kaye Furlong, McGraw-Hill Children’s Publishing, 1992

Best of Totline (Teacher Resource), Vol. 4, Compiled by Gayle Bittinger, Totline Publications, 2004

Integrated Activities for Whole Language and Thematic Teaching (Colors), Creative Teaching Press, Inc., 1991