Math at Home is now Early Math Counts! Visit our new website!

Math at Home is Taking a Vacation

I hope you all have a wonderful and restorative break, if you are fortunate enough to have one. I will be taking 2 weeks off, but will return refreshed and reinvigorated on January 5th for another year of math blogging. Happy New Year! Be Safe and Enjoy Your Families!

The Ambiguity of Time

This is the time of the year when very young children are reminded that something special is coming (Santa Claus, presents, time off, a vacation, grandparents) but they aren’t quite sure when these things are going to happen. They often say,”Santa is coming tomorrow,” much in the same way they say, ‘My birthday is tomorrow,” […]

A Big Week For Early Childhood Education

Last week was BIG for ECE. President Obama released the 2015 federal budget which outlined a continued and broadened commitment to Early Childhood Education. The State of Illinois also received an additional $80 million, in Race to The Top money/Early Learning Challenge, to be distributed and matched by the state over the next 4 years. […]

An Old Friend and An Abacus

When my husband was a child living in Laramie, Wyoming he befriended a boy from Japan who was spending a year in the US with his family. His father was a visiting scholar at the University of Wyoming. Although they only spent one year playing together, this friendship held something special for both of them. […]

To Give a Hoot or to Not Give a Hoot – That is the question

After writing about a Three Dog Night, I got to thinking about other common and not-so-common expressions that might have a place in the early childhood classroom. Who remembers this campaign? According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, to Give a Hoot is to call or shout in disapproval or scorn,” c.1600, probably related to or […]

Top 10 Ways to Keep It Calm This Holiday Season

Unless you work in a faith-based program, the holiday season should be almost nonexistent in your classroom. Some of the December holidays are rooted firmly in religious teachings and others are celebrated by specific cultures. None of them have a place in diverse and publically-funded programs. That does not mean we should ignore them altogether. […]

Legos and Play

I’ve written about Legos several times over the past couple of years simply because they are one of my favorite children’s toys. On Friday, I posted a special message from the Lego Company that was included in the first set of Legos sold in the early 70s. This message just reaffirmed my adoration for these […]

A Great Reminder From Long Ago

I had to share this with you. This is such a great reminder about play, and children, and children who play. These instructions came with an original set of LEGO in 1974. http://io9.com/these-lego-instructions-from-1974-are-awesome-and-yes-1662169567?utm_campaign=socialflow_io9_facebook&utm_source=io9_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow