The students will:

• develop organizational skills through classifying, sorting, ordering, sequencing, estimating and measuring
• develop an understanding of patterning
• use various stages to problem solve
• learn to begin and complete a task
• expand oral language
• strengthen small muscle skills
• cooperate with others
• plan and organize with others
• develop social skills
• role play
• make decisions
• practice completing tasks

Through observation and direct communication, assess whether the student:

• works cooperatively
• practices perseverance and self-discipline (e.g., works with a puzzle until it has been completed)
• sorts and matches objects by colour, size, texture and shape
• practices hand/eye coordination
• explores and experiments with table toys
• plays alone or with others
• uses logic and reasoning skills

Manipulative Stage
The child:

• handles and moves the material
• stacks and knocks down
• is exploring the properties

• experiments with the objects
• can create simple structure patterns
• begin to problem solve

• plays with others
• creates more complicated structures
• can follow instructions
• can match and extend a pattern

Teaching/Assessment Strategies

Materials/Resources

• include self-correcting toys, e.g., puzzles, nesting boxes
• include open-ended toys, e.g., lego, coloured cubes, felt boards, dominoes
• encourage children to match pictures, numbers, symbols
• model how children can break down a task dependently in steps
• foster self-esteem by introducing new vocabulary and encourage conversation
• help them identify concepts and label them