Grade K: EDC Counting Tape – Beginning of the School Year
Instructor Notes:
For materials preparations, click again on Samples and select Getting Started K.
Read Every Day Counts® Teacher’s Guide, Kanter and Gillespie, Great Source, 2005 or 2012 edition, p. 21-26.
The purpose of the Counting Tape and Clip Collection is to increase children’s number sense over time. Each day of school one 3″ colored paper square from the EDC kit will be attached to the Counting Tape, repeating a sequence of colors every ten days. The ten different colors make it easier for children to locate a numeral and for them to see the 1 to 9 counting pattern that repeats with every decade. Drawing a Zero the Hero face on 10, 20, 30, and so on will highlight each completed group of ten.
The Clip Collection, with chains of ten clips, also helps children see the day’s number as groups of ten and leftover ones. Each day, in addition to having the class count the squares or clips with 1 to 1 correspondence, you may also want to model writing the day’s numeral to help children understand the meaning of the digits. For example, as we write 12 we can say, “1 full group (or chain) of ten and 2 extra ones.”
Grade K: EDC Calendar – Beginning of September or First Month of School
Instructor Notes:
For materials preparations, click again on Samples and select Getting Started K.
Read Every Day Counts® Teacher’s Guide, Kanter and Gillespie, Great Source, 2005 or 2012 edition, p. 18-21.
If you are on year-round schedule you may want to use the August calendar pieces during the first month of your school year and repeat the pattern using the September pieces during your next month. If you are on a traditional school year and begin before September, you can use the August pieces in August and revisit the basic pattern in September using September pieces.
To introduce the Calendar you might start with a blank Calendar and point out and name the days of the week across the top. Some teachers like to share a Days of the Week song(for example, repeating the days of the week to the tune of Oh My Darling Clementine).
Turn over green calendar pieces for school days and yellow pieces for weekends up to the present day. Some days practice saying the numerals in order. On other days name the colors noting the green school days and yellow weekend days.
As each birthday arrives during the month, the birthday child’s gift marker is returned to the month’s Birthday Basket.
