Today we are using the natural formation of sidewalk cracks to help children with visual perception. The children have been running, frolicking, bouncing, dancing, and giggling in the Autumn sun and breeze. We retook a stroll around the neighborhood, finding many learning opportunities. Today, I will highlight some of our sidewalk discoveries.
What do you see when you look at this crack? How many ways did you see the image, and how many items did you discover? While gesturing his hand in the air, one child said, “I see the cross and down, the T” His friend muttered yeah, yeah, “I see it too!” I asked what else do you see? The four-year-old said, “what, Miss Sue, what you see?” I said, “I see an H and a T!” Now that I am relooking at it, I see a pant with a small button. What do you see – this is my visual perception activity.
How about this image, don’t say the basket; she is holding one for our nature treasures. I immediately see an A, Y, and a bug. The children didn’t recognize anything – instead, they were cautious about jumping over the cracks; they said, ” it’s safe, we made it!”
What about this one? What do you see? the children say, “X marks the spot!” What other images do you see? – a tent, a teepee.
For this one, my almost four-year-old said, “Miss Sue, I see the H and an A.” When I look at it sideways, I see an uppercase I, H, C, L, and a lowercase ‘e’ – what about you? I want to add that the children in my care are curious about letters, numbers, and shapes. I have some alphabet in the play space, which helps them make connections and learn; yes, I scaffold their learning.
My four-year-old said, “I see a Y, a line, and another line, and that makes the X, 1, 2, 3, and 4.” I didn’t get to finish the conversation before my active child started to get fussy – it was almost lunchtime. I will send the images to print, and these will be added to our environment for further inquiry.
I would love to hear what other shapes, letters, numbers, and images you’ve identified. Do you think there is value to these small teachable moments? We love these children’s visual perception activities. We’ve been doing visual perception activities with sticks, trees, and barks. Have fun doing these with the children in your care, early years, childcare, daycare, and just about anyone – even the grandparents.
Lots of Love Suzette Salmon aka Miss Sue
Leave a Reply