The Measured Mom

Education resources for parents and teachers

Home

PSPKK12338 Comments

Outdoor Math Game for Preschoolers: Exploring Size (with printable action cards)

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Sharing is caring!

The predicted rain held off this week, and we’re finally getting outdoors!  Instead of doing math at the table we played an active outdoor math game for preschoolers.

outdoor math game for preschoolers

The other day as the kids played outside I told them to point out things that were large, small, or their same size. I noticed that my Two (almost three) didn’t have a great concept of “very big” and “very small.”  To him, the bicycle was very big.  Very small was a basketball.  I wanted to create a game that would give him lots of practice examining and comparing sizes.

I created a set of action cards to give our game some direction:

action cards

These action cards are, of course, completely optional, but I liked using them for a few reasons:

1) I did my thinking beforehand and didn’t need to think of something on the spot.  I’m sure many of you have way more brain power than I do, but I am seriously beat by the afternoon.

2) It gave my daughter something to read.  This made her happy — and since she’s the oldest, her attitude often leads the way for her little brothers.

3) As the kids took turns choosing action cards, it gave them the feeling that they had some power in the game.

4) It gave the game some direction.  At a few different points both my Two and Four decided to quit playing.  But when they realized it was time to draw another card, they eagerly returned.

5) Okay, I have to say there are some pretty phenomenal mom bloggers out there with nary a printable to be found.  But I can’t help myself.   They’re just so clean, neat, and — well, printed!  I started making them on a manual typewriter when I played school as a kid.  Later I typed my eighth grade study guides on an electric typewriter, and in high school I charged $1 a page to type my friends’ reports on a word processing typewriter.  Now that technology has advanced so much, how can I help myself??

I printed the cards on bright paper, cut them apart, and put them in a container.

children around table with child holding card

The kids took turns drawing a card. My Five read them aloud.

child comparing baseball bat to bike

“Find something smaller than a bike.”

child running around house

“Run around something that is very big.”

children sitting on playset

“Sit on something that is very, very big.”

This game kept us busy for a while.  How did it meet the  needs of each of my kids?  It gave my Five some fun time with Mom.  It was an energy burner for my Four (and he always needs one of those!).  And it was a real learning opportunity for my Two.  By the end of the game his concept of size had really improved.

child walking on sidewalk

And my One enjoyed the action —  while he did his own exploring.

This kind of game is great for spur-of-the-moment outdoor fun or a planned math lesson.

Get your free printable action cards!

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD

Sharing is caring!

You May Also Enjoy These Posts:

Transportation counting book Bugs in a jar counting game Monster count & clip cards

Reader Interactions

38 Comments

  4. Lindsey Whitney

    Visiting from Pinkoddy. I love this game and I agree — having something made up ahead of time is way better than thinking on the spot. Heading to check out your ladybug math now!

    Lindsey @ GrowingKidsMinistry.com

    Reply to this comment

  8. Rachel

    This is fantastic!!!! What a fun game. I LOVE how you are incorporating the outdoors, math, and some exercise and fun all into one activity. Thanks so much for sharing at For the Kids Fridays over at SunScholars. I am featuring your post this week! Come grab a featured button… and I would LOVE to have you back to share with us again soon!

    Reply to this comment

  10. jeannine: waddlee-ah-chaa

    Absolutely love all of the action learning! The hands-on learning and application is so effective with children. And darn it, it’s more fun than sitting inside.

    Reply to this comment

    • annageig

      Thanks so much, Jeannine! I visited your site- it looks fantastic! I’m following by e-mail. Can I ask what’s the age difference between you and your sister? (if my daughter ever gets a sister there will be a sizable age gap…)

      Reply to this comment

      • jeannine: waddlee-ah-chaa

        My sisters are 10 and 12 years older than me. A bit of a gap! We are very close and have always been extremely supportive of each other. It was fun growing-up with sisters who were always looking out for me. In return, I grew very close to their children. Our ages are all mixed-up but we are one big happy family. 🙂

        Reply to this comment

        • annageig

          So nice to hear from you again, Jeannine! Wow, 10 and 12 years! It’s so inspiring and encouraging to me to hear of siblings who are good friends with that kind of age gap. Growing up, our family was all very close in age (5 kids in 5.5 years – one set of twins), so that’s what I know. I don’t know what God has in mind for my family now. I love stories like yours!

          Reply to this comment

  11. Jill

    What a fantastic interactive way to get outside and learn some core math skills for young ones! Thank you for linking up this week to the Hearts for Home Blog Hop. I hope to see you link up next week as well 🙂

    Reply to this comment

  12. Dollie @ Teachers of Good Things

    This is the first time I have been on your site and I’m visiting from the Tender Moments with Toddlers and Preschoolers. I’m one of the co-host!

    I absolutely love your card idea and know that my 3 year old would love this game, mostly because it includes outside!

    Hope you come back and link up more of your great ideas!

    Reply to this comment

Trackbacks

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.