Nursery Rhyme Mathematics

Terrie Schmoldt

terrieschmoldt@gmail.com

Nursery Rhyme Journal

• Journals are a great compilation of student work which is useful for: – Portfolios

– Student led conferences

– Math Night

– Helpful for parents when selecting what work to keep and to guide discussion. Asking specific questions like “What happened when Humpty Dumpty fell?” versus general questions “What did you do today?” prompts greater discussion.

Little Bo Peep Activity #1

Math Skill: greater than, less than

Materials: nursery rhyme journal, pencil

and crayons, cane

Activity: Show the students the cane.

Discuss things in the classroom that are

smaller. Discuss things that are larger.

Model how to complete the Nursery Rhyme

Journal. Explain that greater than means

more or in this case larger and less than

means less or smaller.

Adaptation: When discussing things that

are smaller, have each student get

something that is smaller and go around

the circle to share. Repeat with something

that is larger.

Hey Diddle Diddle Activity #2

Math Skill: non-standard measurement

Materials: unifix cubes, nursery rhyme

journal, spoons (3 sizes such as baby spoon,

teaspoon and serving spoon), plastic knife,

paper plate and cut out of the moon.

Activity 2A: Use the Nursery Rhyme Journal.

Record the data after measuring the 3 actual

spoons with unifix cubes.

Activity 2B: Use the Nursery Rhyme Journal

page to measure other items and record the

data.

Idea: make a transparency of the journal

pages, use the journal pages and unifix cubes

on the overhead

transparency

• Math Skill: classifying

• Materials: variety of silverware (plastic, metal, wooden, colored, fork, spoons, knives)

• Activity: Ask students how these items could be sorted and do it together. Then ask how else they could be sorted and do it. Continue as appropriate. (sort by fork, spoon, knife; color; plastic, metal, wooden

• Extensions: make patterns

• Other Extensions: add a variety of bowls and spoons to the sorting and/or the pattern making activities

Hey Diddle Diddle Activity 2C

Old Mother Hubbard Activity 3A

Math Skill: greater than, less than or equal to,

heavier and lighter, and estimating

Materials: pan balance, Scooby Doo Treats

(edible graham cookies), items to weigh

(crayons, Matchbox cars, marbles, scissors,

Unifix cubes, glue sticks and dice).

Activity: Begin by showing the students the

Scooby treats and the other items to be weighed.

Have the students make predictions how many

Scooby treats it takes to equal each item.

Before weighing anything, explain how the pan

balance shows what it greater than, less than or

equal to.

Then one at a time, after writing the estimate,

put each item in the pan balance and see how

Scooby treats it takes to equal the item. Record

the data in their journal.

• Math Skill: non-standard measurement

• Materials: Scooby Doo treats, scale and items to measure

• Activity: Use Scooby Doo treats to measure how long each item is. Record answers in the Nursery Rhyme Journal.

Old Mother Hubbard Activity 3B

Jack and Jill Activity 4

Math and Science Skill: estimation and sink

or float

Materials: bucket of water, items to estimate

and put in water (crayons, Matchbox cars,

marbles, scissors, Unifix cubes, glue

sticks and dice).

Activity: let the children explore the items to

be put in water, in the gray column have

them estimate whether or not they think

they will sink or float. Then actually put

each item in the bucket of water, one at a

time and record answers in nursery rhyme

journal.

Peas Porridge Hot Activity 5A

Math Skill: Estimation, greater than and

less than

Materials: small bowl, medium bowl and

large bowl, pot, serving spoon, dry rice or

oats

Activity: estimate how many serving

spoonfuls it will take to fill each bowl.

Then fill each bowl and record the actual

number of spoonfuls for each.

Peas Porridge Hot Activity 5B

• Math Skill: Adding up to 9, writing numbers 0-9

• Materials: spinner, Nursery Rhyme Journal

• Activity: Write a number on each triangle of the circle (1-8). Spin the spinner. Write down the number it lands on and figure out what number needs to be added to it to make 9. Record on Nursery Rhyme Journal.

Humpty Dumpty Activity 6

• Math Skill: Adding to 5

• Materials: Lots of plastic Easter eggs (write the numbers on them ahead of time)

• Activity: Have students put eggs together so that the two halves equal five.

• Other ideas:

– on the print out of Humpty Dumpty. Draw a line on the space between each word = a brick. Write numbers on each of the bricks (1- ) with a red crayon.

– Measure the wall Humpty sits on (how wide, how tall) draw a picture of Humpty and measure him.

Little Boy Blue Activity 7

Math Skill: position words

Materials: flannel board, position words,

picture of Little Boy Blue, photo of each

student

Activity: Enlarge the copy of the nursery

rhyme to 11 x 17 or write it on sentence strips

to use on a pocket chart. Cut out the position

words to use too. Read the rhyme using the

various position words and moving a picture

of the boy accordingly.

Extension: take a photo of each student

“sleeping” and make a version to take home

for each student. Parents LOVE this!

Make it more hands-on, use a haystack made

of play dough and a Lego boy!

Hickory Dickory Dock Activity 8

Math Skill: Writing numbers 1-12, reading

numbers 1-12, counting by ones to 12,

counting by 5s to 60, half and quarter

Materials: pattern to make a clock for each

child on card stock, brass fastener per

student, Judy Clock for the teacher to

model and lead class discussion

Activity: Have each child make their own

clock. Model using an analog clock.

Guide the class through reading the time

on the clock, counting minutes by ones

and fives and writing times.

Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe

Activity 9A

Math Skill: Classifying, Patterning

Materials: shoes from each student in the

class, Nursery Rhyme Journal

Activity: Have everyone take off their

shoes and put them in the middle of a

school. Then ask students how the shoes

could be sorted. (by color, style, size, etc.)

Use the shoes to make patterns. What

kind of patterns can be made?

• Math Skill: adding

• Materials: two dice, shoe pictures to use as manipulatives and Nursery Rhyme Journal

• Activity: Roll two dice, use that many shoe manipulatives to add how many shoes it will equal.

Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe

Activity 9B

Little Miss Muffet Activity 10

Math Skill: adding up to eight

Materials: two sets of number cards 0-8,

Nursery Rhyme Journal

Activity: Lay out number cards upside

down. Each student may select two

cards, one blue and one green. Add the

two cards and fill in the sum on the chart

in the Nursery Rhyme Journal. Complete

the 8 column and the game is done!

Nursery Rhyme Olympics

Tips and Suggestions

• Decide how many stations you need. • Have a parent volunteer or two to stay at and run each

station. Have each teacher rotate through the stations with his/her class.

• Invite administration, school board and/or local

newspaper. Great photo opportunity and good school p.r.

• Have one designated person to monitor all stations, and

blow a whistle to rotate stations every approximate 10 minutes.

• Have a parent or staff member designated to run kids to the bathroom, have kleenix and first aid.

• Have the directions for each station printed for the parent volunteers at that station.

• Print the nursery rhyme for each station on the back of the instruction sheet.

• Have parents help carry and set up stations.

Dear Families,

The kindergarten classes will be having a Nursery Rhyme Olympics on the afternoon of Friday, June 3rd. There will be 7 stations of activities: relays,

races and fun. It will take place outside of the field house.

We need volunteers to help! If you would be ready, willing and able to help us from 12:45 to 2:15, please let us know. Volunteers can meet Mrs.

Schmoldt in the lobby at 12:45. Bring your camera!

I would love to come and help!

Parent Name:____________________________

Child’s Teacher: _____________________________

Nursery Rhyme Olympics

Baa Baa Black Sheep Sack Race

• Materials: 2 gunny sacks, 4 hoola hoops

• Directions: Divide the students into 2 lines, have a hoola hoop for the beginning of each line and a hoola hoop at the end destination for each line. Each student will get in a gunny sack, jump to the other hoola hoop and back.

Baa Baa Black Sheep

Baa Baa Black Sheep have you any wool?

Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full.

One for my master, one for my

dame, and one for the little boy

who lives down the lane.

Nursery Rhyme Olympics

Humpty Dumpty Puzzle Race

• Materials: color and laminate a humpty dumpty puzzle (cut into 4 pieces), 4 hoola hoops

• Directions: Divide the students into 2 lines, have a hoola hoop for the beginning of each line and a hoola hoop at the end destination for each line. Have students race to the end hoola hoop, put the Humpty Dumpty puzzle together and race back.

Humpty Dumpty

Humpty Dumpty sat on the wall.

Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.

All the king’s horses and all the king’s men, could put Humpty together again.

Nursery Rhyme Olympics

Jack Be Nimble Hurdles

• Materials: old candles (various sizes will be fine) and 4 hoola hoops

• Directions: Divide the students into 2 lines, have a hoola hoop for the beginning of each line and a hoola hoop at the end destination for each line. set up the candles as “hurdles” to jump over as they race to the end hoola hoop and back.

Jack Be Nimble

Jack be nimble.

Jack be quick.

Jack jump over the candlestick.

Nursery Rhyme Olympics

Hey Diddle Diddle Jump

• Materials: 8 playground balls, tag board strips stapled into circles, picture of a cow stapled to a tag board headband (2), 4 hoola hoops

• Directions: Divide the students into 2 lines,

have a hoola hoop for the beginning of each line and a hoola hoop at the end destination for each line. Set each playground ball (a/k/a moon) on a tag board ring. Each row will have four moons to jump over. Have each student wear the cow headband as they jump over the moons to the end hoola hoop and back.

Hey Diddle Diddle Hey Diddle Diddle

The Cat and the Fiddle

The Cow jumped over the Moon

The little dog laughed to see such a sight

And the Dish ran away with the Spoon

Nursery Rhyme Olympics

Little Miss Muffet’s Chase

• Materials: parachute, pillow, small bowl and spoon, black tag board strip stapled into a circle with 8 black construction strips accordion folded, stapled to it.

• Directions: Divide the students into 2 lines,

have a hoola hoop for the beginning of each line and a hoola hoop at the end destination for each line. Have one person designated as Miss Muffet sit on her tuffet with her curds and whey under the parachute. Have one person designated as the spider wearing the spider head band. The rest of the students will be holding the edge of the parachute. The spider will visit Miss Muffet and she will run away while the others raise and lower the

• parachute.

Little Miss Muffet

Little Miss Muffet

Sat on a tuffet

Eating her curds and whey.

Along came a spider

Who sat down beside her,

And frightened Miss Muffet away!

Nursery Rhyme Olympics

Diddle Diddle Dumpling Sock Race

• Materials: Several old men’s tube socks. (great item for parents to donate), four hoola hoops

• Directions: Divide the students into 2 lines, have a hoola hoop for the beginning of each line and a hoola hoop at the end destination for each line. Have each child put on one sock before racing to the end hoola hoop and back.

Diddle Diddle Dumpling

Diddle Diddle Dumpling,

my son John

Went to bed with his stockings on,

One shoe off and one shoe on,

Diddle Diddle Dumpling,

my son John

Nursery Rhyme Olympics

Rub A Dub Dub Three Men in a Tub Race

• Materials: four hoola hoops

• Directions: Divide the students into 2 lines, have a hoola hoop for the beginning of each line and a hoola hoop at the end destination for each line. Have three students at the front of each line. They may hook elbows and race to the end hoola hoop and back. When done, mix up partners and continue.

Rub a Dub Dub

Rub a Dub Dub

Three men in a tub

And who do you think they be?

The butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker,

Fools all three!

Nursery Rhyme Olympics

Simple Simon Pie Plate Race

• Materials: 2 aluminum pie pans stapled to 2 tag board strips stapled into a circle and 4 hoola hoops

• Directions: Divide the students into 2 lines, have a hoola hoop for the beginning of each line and a hoola hoop at the end destination for each line. Have each student wear the pie plate hat while racing to the hoola hoop at the other end and back.

Simple Simon

Simple Simon met a pieman going to the fair; Said Simple Simon to the pieman "Let me taste your ware" Said the pieman to Simple Simon "Show me first your penny" Said Simple Simon to the pieman "Sir, I have not any!"

Nursery Rhyme Olympics

Nursery Rhyme Detective

• Materials: Index cards with clues and a nursery rhyme book

• Directions: have a parent ask the clues and children guess the answers.

Resources:

Teaching Math and Science through

Nursery Rhymes, Teacher Created

Materials

Copycat (Teacher Magazine)

May/June 1996