intro:
Whether you live in a climate where is snows or not, children are intrigued by snow people. This activity allows children to build their own snow person while practicing their counting skills. This activity makes math fun! How tall will you stack yours?
set up ideas:
Get the children excited by showing them all types of snow people, and how they can be made in different sizes and from materials.
Whether you live in a climate where is snows or not, children are intrigued by snow people. This activity allows children to build their own snow person while practicing their counting skills. This activity makes math fun! How tall will you stack yours?
set up ideas:
Get the children excited by showing them all types of snow people, and how they can be made in different sizes and from materials.
let's get started
Provide enough white or colored dough for each child to create their own snowperson. Make sure to keep a clean surface for the dough. Hand out chart paper and markers to graph the numbers.
step 1
Give each child some dough and challenge them to roll as many snowballs as they can, making balls of different sizes. Demonstrate rolling a “snowball” with your hands.
Give each child some dough and challenge them to roll as many snowballs as they can, making balls of different sizes. Demonstrate rolling a “snowball” with your hands.
step 2
Challenge the children to begin with the largest snowballs they have made and see how high they can stack them to create a tall snow person.
Challenge the children to begin with the largest snowballs they have made and see how high they can stack them to create a tall snow person.
step 3
When their snowperson topples over, have the child count how many snowballs they were able to stack before it fell and write that number down. Create a bar graph of everyone’s records.
When their snowperson topples over, have the child count how many snowballs they were able to stack before it fell and write that number down. Create a bar graph of everyone’s records.
step 4
Invite the children to try to adjust their snow person's snowball sizes and see if they can make a snow person even taller than the last. Suggest that a wider or narrower base may sway their results.
Invite the children to try to adjust their snow person's snowball sizes and see if they can make a snow person even taller than the last. Suggest that a wider or narrower base may sway their results.
Have the children go over the number of snowballs they used in each snow person. Explain how the sizes of the snowballs and how they are stacked effects how well their snow person stands. Ask children if they’ve ever made a snowperson in real life and encourage them to share their experiences.
Tips and TricksMake sure to keep track of the amount of snowballs used with each child by counting as they stack. Invite the children to name their snow people and Make up silly stories about their lives.
Follow up ActivityTeach students how to graph their experiment. Teach them different types of graphs and allow them to choose which they feel is most appropriate for charting their snowperson building.