Pete the Cat is back and helping the Easter bunny in this holiday edition, “Pete the Cat: Big Easter Adventure” by James Dean. After reading this story, we had to help the Easter bunny too! Your preschooler can help save Easter by matching the eggs and putting them in the Easter basket.
Here’s the set-up:
1. With sharpie write the numbers 0-10 on the bottom parts of the plastic eggs. I opted to write each number so that when the eggs were apart on the table, the numbers were facing upright for my daughter (see picture). As I’ve mentioned in other posts, I like to add in zero to get my little one used to seeing and understanding the concept of zero.
2. Make dots on the tops of the eggs that match the numbers on the bottom. It’s important to make sure the colors match (orange egg = 6 dots & number 6). This way, if your preschooler needs a little help, you can guide him/her with the color (“you’re looking for a matching orange egg bottom”).
It’s also helpful to write the dots in a 10-frame format. This means you are using rows. The first 5 dots are on the top row. The next 5 dots start a new row (again, see picture if needed). Your preschooler will use 10-frames for counting in kindergarten and this is great practice to get them counting left to right, top to bottom.
3. Set out a basket for the completed eggs.
Your little one is ready to go!
1. Have your preschooler pick an egg top and count the dots aloud. Guide him/her to point to each dot and count left to right, top to bottom. (My little one is still working on this!)
2. Find the matching number and snap it to the top. If your preschooler needs help guide them with a color rather than finding the egg for them. (“You’re looking for an orange 6. You’re looking for a green 8.”)
3. Help Pete the Cat and the Easter bunny by putting the completed egg in the basket.
This was a tough one! You can modify this activity by only using numbers 0-5. And remember, your preschooler doesn’t have to complete all of them! They can do a few and stop or as an alternative you can take turns and make it a game. Learning at this stage should always be fun and not a fight! 😉
Little learners today, leaders tomorrow… happy creating!
Want to try this activity out? Just pick up the materials below and have fun!
Are You a New York State Pre-K Teacher?
This lesson aligns with the Next Gen Standards:
- Counting and Cardinality: Count to tell the number of objects
PK.CC.3a – When counting objects, say the number names in standard order, pairing each object with one and only one number name and each number name with one and only one object (1:1 correspondence)
MATERIALS:
- Plastic Easter eggs (11x)
- Black marker
BOOKS: