The Snowball Game

We are waiting for the snow at our house.  And not because I like snow (I don't), but because that would be the perfect time to play the new game we learned at Language Stars* this week.  It is a perfect game to play both at home and in the classroom.

As usual, the game was very simple, yet effective with toddlers.  My almost-three-year-old son LOVED it!  And so did every other child in the class.  It was certainly proof that you don't have to buy expensive toys and learning materials when boxes and things around the house can be just as entertaining (especially if an expensive toy came in said box).

The topic for the class was winter time (or something like that), so we were learning words like snow, snowflake, snowman, etc.  And what makes a better snowball than a cotton ball?  Very simple:  The teacher took out snowballs, threw them around, gave each child a small net and demonstrated how they should count each snowball as they put it in the net.  My son thought that was the best game ever!  He proceeded to pick them up, count them, throw them around the room on his own, and pick them up again.  And I thought, "This is a definite must-play at home." (Sorry we don't have any pictures, I got caught up in the game, too!)

I'm still thinking about how to best use the game at school.  At home, we'll use it just like we did at Language Stars, practicing "xue hua" (snowflake) and counting.  At school, I'm thinking about attaching sight words to the cotton balls or graphing the number of cotton balls each child is able to pick up.  Even though it's such a simple concept, there are many possibilities!  First, I just have to check to see if I have enough cotton balls!

As always,
Thanks for reading!
Tammy

*We get 50% off of our Language Stars tuition for my blogging.  You wouldn't know I was a couponer, would you?