Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 Mathematics in the Early Years: Space, the final frontier Mary Briggs

Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 About Mary Briggs Mary Briggs is principal lecturer and Programme Lead for Primary and Early Years Education at Oxford Brookes University. She has previously worked at the Open University and University of Warwick as a teacher and researcher on educational programmes from undergraduate to doctoral level. She has acted as a consultant for a number of organisations about the learning and teaching of mathematics. Mary has written a number of books focusing on different aspects of education.

Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 Planning for activities to promote mathematical learning Planning in three different ways: 1. Specific adult-led activities to encourage and develop specific skills 2. Activities as part of continuous provision 3. Play environments

Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 Adult-led activities With a small group, a simple activity can be to have a collection of regular and irregular shapes in the middle of the circle of children and then ask children to find a specific shape either from its name or properties (providing these have been introduced already in both regular and irregular forms).

Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 Adult-led activities Try shape matching to a prepared picture made of different shapes. Once a shape has been found and placed on the picture with a sticky fastening then the group can talk about the shapes.

Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 Adult-led activities This is a variation on the previous activity. Split the children into two groups and get them to race to find the shapes on a copy of the same picture for each group. (Include both regular and irregular forms of shapes.)

Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 What is Continuous provision? It is NOT JUST provision that is continually accessible. But IS a selection of resources that have been placed in areas by practitioners that continue the provision for learning in the absence of an adult.

Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 Example 1: Continuous provision Make available a box of shapes that come with a small hammer to tap a pin through the shapes to hold them in place. These can be used to form shape pictures. The children have to use finer motor skills in tapping the small nail into the shape to fix it to a cork board. - If the game is not available you may have a velcro wall or space where children can create shape patterns on a surface that will at least temporarily secure the shapes in the arrangement the child(ren) want

Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 Example 2: Continuous provision Make available large shapes cut from carpet tiles that can be used to form paths across the setting or to make patterns with the shapes. These can be left for the children to explore independently or a challenge introduced that children can then engage with if they choose this activity

Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 Example 3: Continuous provision Make available a table with a range of boxes of different sizes and shapes to fill with a variety of objects. Encourage children to explore what fits into which containers. This is about challenging the children to explore and to fit as many smaller boxes into a larger one as possible.

Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 Play environments A play environment can be developed as part of a theme, maybe from a book. In the case of shape and space this could be Hansel and Gretel where the play environment is the witch’s cottage with sweet windows in different shapes and sweet sorting activities possible inside the cottage. This would be an environment started by the practitioner, who might build a cottage in part of the setting and then get the children involved in designing and decorating the cottage and the windows before play begins.

Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 Play environments A child may come in with an interesting book, toy or idea that you can work into a play environment. An example might be a child that comes in with a caterpillar which leads to discussion about what caterpillars turn into. A cylinder of cloth or a large tube could be used for a child to act as a caterpillar. Then by draping a fine cloth across a corner of the room a chrysalis could be constructed. Children could enter the chrysalis as a caterpillar and exit with wings that they have made. Through this children can explore the initial ideas of symmetry.

Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 Play environments Another way to create play environments is for the adults to start the environment but children can then add their own ideas to this and the environment evolves. A cave for mining gems could be established in an area in the setting or classroom. Miners lamps on hats could help to make it more authentic. Gems could be hidden in the cave and children given a variety of containers to fill, for example egg boxes with ellipsoids (egg shapes) or a large cube into which smaller cubes will fit, and so on.

Copyright © Property of Critical Publishing Ltd 2016 To learn more see Chapter 3: Space, the final frontier in the following book. Mary Briggs is the author of Teaching and Learning Early Years Mathematics: Subject and Pedagogic Knowledge – an essential guide for anyone involved in introducing young children to their vital first experiences of maths. To purchase a copy, visit