On Day 2 we matched letters on letter cards to letters on our letter mats. Today we are going to match letters again.

What is a letter? (a special mark used to make words)

[Display letter manipulatives.]

Each of us will use uppercase letters D, L, N, and G and a letter mat to do our activity.

[Pass out a letter mat and cup of letter manipulatives to each child.]

I will say the name of the first letter on our letter mat, and then we will say the letter name together. Next I will say the sound the letter makes, and we will say the sound together. Finally, we will find the letter from our cup that matches the letter on our letter mat and place the letter on top of the letter on our letter mat.

Let’s look at the first letter on our letter mat.

[Point to the letter D on the letter mat.]

This is the letter D. Let’s together say its name.

The letter D makes the sound /d/, like at the beginning of the word “dance.” Let’s together say the sound of letter D: /d/.

Now we want to find the letter D in our cup.

[Help children find the letter D manipulative, if necessary.]

Now let’s place the letter D on our letter mat.

[Place the letter D manipulative on top of the letter D on the letter mat.]

Let’s try another letter!

[Point to letter L on the letter mat. Say its name and ask children to together repeat its name. Next say its sound, and then a word that begins with the same sound, and then ask children to together repeat its sound. Finally encourage children to find the letter L manipulative and place it on the letter L on the letter mat. Continue until you have said the name and sound, and matched each letter on the letter mat in order.]

Today we learned more about letters D, L, N, and G. We matched letters from our cup to the same letter on our letter mat. We also said each letter name and sound.

[Display ladybug picture.]

On Day 2 we added spots to a picture of a ladybug. Today we are going to add spots to a picture of a whale. We also will take away some spots we put on our whale picture.

[Display picture of whale.]

What happens to a group when we take away items? (it gets smaller)

[Give each child a whale picture and four counters.]

We will pretend our circles (counters) are spots.

Please put four spots on your whale. Please count each spot you put on your whale picture to be sure your picture has four spots.

[Pause while children place four counters on their whale.]

We will use a spinner to tell us how many spots to subtract from our whale. Subtract means to take away something from a group of things. We are going to take away spots from our whale picture.

[Display spinner. Show how it works, if appropriate.]

I will spin the spinner, and we will subtract the number of circles the spinner lands on. I will show you how to do it.

[Spin the spinner. Point to and say the number it lands on. Count out and take away the corresponding number of spots from the whale.]

I subtracted ___ spots from my whale picture. Now I want to find out how many spots I have left on my whale.

How could we find out how many spots are left on the whale? (count them)

Let’s count the spots together.

[Lead children in counting the number of spots left on the whale while pointing to the spots as you count each.]

Let’s all of us take away spots on our whale picture. Each of us has four spots on our whale. I will spin the spinner, and we will subtract the number of spots that the spinner lands on.

[Repeat the activity beginning with six spots on each whale. Invite a volunteer child to spin the spinner and say what number the spinner lands on. As appropriate, help children subtract the corresponding number of spots from their whale and then count to find out how many are left.]

Today we used whale pictures to practice subtracting. What happens when we subtract? (take away)

We do many different things in our classroom every day. What are some of the things we do? (eat snack and lunch, take a nap, play outside, center time, group time, etc.)

Each of the things we do takes a certain amount of time. Some things take a short amount of time. Some things take a longer amount of time. Our snack takes a short amount of time. Our outdoor time takes a longer amount of time.

[Encourage children to compare activities in your classroom that take a short amount of time versus a longer amount of time to do. Examples: handwashing time versus lunchtime, snack time versus center time. Point out that some things take more time than others.]

Today we will find out how long it takes to do some things by using a stopwatch. A stopwatch is a special kind of watch that can tell us how long it takes to do something.

[Demonstrate how the stopwatch works, including how to make it start and stop. Show children the numbers on the stopwatch.]

We are going to see how long it takes for us to jump 10 times. I will start the stopwatch when we begin jumping, and I will stop the stopwatch when we stop jumping. The numbers on the stopwatch will tell us how long it takes to jump 10 times.

[Invite children to jump when you say “go.” Start and stop the stopwatch as children begin and finish 10 jumps.

Write the amount of time on a chart paper. The exact amount of time is not important for children to remember. The intent is to help children become familiar with differences in the amount of time various activities take.]

Now, let’s see how long it takes to jump 20 times! Twenty jumps is more than 10 jumps. I will start the stopwatch when we begin jumping, and I will stop the stopwatch when we stop jumping.

[Invite children to jump when you say “go.” Start and stop the stopwatch as children begin and finish 20 jumps.

Write the amount of time on a chart. Compare the amount of time it takes for 10 and 20 jumps.]

Do you think it will take a longer amount of time for one of us to walk to our classroom door or to walk across the room? Let’s try it and find out.

[Start and stop the stopwatch as a volunteer child begins and finishes walking to the door. Use the stopwatch again as a different volunteer child begins and ends a walk across the room. Write the amount of time for each on a chart. Compare the amount of time it took to do each.]

Some things in our day take a longer amount of time than other things. What is something you do at home that might take a long time? (bath time, nap time, etc.) What is something you do at home that might take a short amount of time? (washing hands, brushing teeth, etc.)

[Display ball.]

We are learning how to move a ball away from us. Last week we practiced kicking a ball. Kicking is one way to move a ball away from us. What is another way we can move a ball away from us? (throwing)

• What part of our body do we use to throw a ball? (arm, hand)
• What part of our body do we use to kick a ball (foot, leg)

Today we will practice kicking and then throwing a ball. Let’s remember how we kick and how we throw a ball.

[Place ball on the ground/floor in front of you. Demonstrate actions as you describe each step.]

• What do we do to get ready to kick a ball? (look at the ball)
• What do we do next? (decide what foot to use for kicking)
• What do we do with our other foot? (put non-kicking foot next to the ball)
• What part of our foot do we use to kick the ball? (inside)

Let’s spread ourselves out so there’s a safe space between us. Then let’s practice kicking an imaginary (pretend) ball.

Now let’s remember how we use an underarm throw to move a ball away from us. We know that we move one of our arms backward and then forward when we do an underarm throw.

[Demonstrate actions as you describe each step.]

• What do we do first? (stand tall with both feet on the floor pointing in the direction we want to throw, and look where we want to throw)
• What do we do next? (hold the ball in our throwing hand with our throwing arm at the side of our body)
• What do we do with our throwing arm? (move it backward and put the opposite leg in front of our body)
• What is the last thing we do? (move throwing arm forward and let go of the ball when it reaches the level of our chest)

Let’s practice throwing an imaginary (pretend) ball.

Now we are ready to play a game called Move Down the Field. Three of us will play at one time. We will stand in front of a rope and then move our ball down the field.

Each of us will get two balls. First we will kick one ball. We will kick from a standing position. We will kick the ball once. Then we will throw our other ball. We will throw the ball once.

We want to find out if our ball moves farther down the field by kicking or by throwing. It is okay if our ball does not get to the goal line. We are practicing. We are not competing.

I will (describe auditory signal) after all of us have a chance to kick and throw. The (signal) means it is safe for each of us to pick up our balls and stand behind the other rope. Then we will practice kicking and throwing again. We will use one ball for kicking and the other ball for throwing.

Please watch me (or other adult) play our game.

[Describe and demonstrate kicking one ball and throwing the other ball. Use and describe the meaning of your signal. Then retrieve both balls, stand behind the opposite rope, and repeat the actions. Emphasize the importance of waiting for the signal before walking beyond the start line to retrieve balls. Remind children that the game is practice; there are no winners or losers.]

[Select three children to participate first. Designate a space for other children to wait and watch. Manage the flow of three children participating at a time. Provide verbal support as appropriate. Gather children in a group at the conclusion of the practice.]

Today we practiced two different ways to move a ball away from us.

• Did your ball go farther down our field by throwing or by kicking?
• Why do you think this happened?