... . ... Use this site to help your students: Many cognitive skills have already been covered in other areas. Others are covered here including some requested by parents and by kindergarten teachers. Color identification - there are 3 steps to learning colors. They are: Color matching. Using 2 sets of crayons, hold one color up and ask the child to find the other one that is blue (red, green, etc.) Using a group of colored shapes or color bears, have the child sort them into piles by color Show the child a red (yellow, etc.) shape and ask him/her to find other things in the room that are that color Let the children find matching colors on their own and other children's clothes ONLINE ACTIVITIES: Practice matching colors with A Rainbow of Frogs and So Many Different Colors. Color identifying (being able to find a color when you name it). Use color names often during your daily routines Sing songs using color names Play games requiring different activities according to the color the child holds such as color bingo or color card games like "Go Fish" Using one set of crayons, ask the child to show you the green color Play "I Spy" Color naming (being able to see a color and name it with no clues). Continue the above games, songs, and activities. When the child is mastering the skill, reinforce it by letting the child be the facilitator of the games so they can practice the skill Knowing concepts. Use the concept words often in daily activities Play games naming opposites (hot - cold, up - down, empty - full) Sing active songs using concepts (fast - slow, in - out) Sort shapes, found objects, animal pictures, items in a learning center by size Compare objects for length measure using a long string and a short string use long and short paper at the easel and in your writing center Compare the same objects for different attributes (fast - slow, wet - dry, etc.) Do science experiments such as melting ice to show liquid - solid Have the children move (fast - slow, lightly - heavily, forwards - backwards) Weigh objects for heavy - light Classify objects by use Classify objects by where they may be found (land, sea, sky; library, home, school, beach) ONLINE ACTIVITY: Explore concepts such as "in", "out", "above" and "below" with our Spatial Concepts pages http://www.meddybemps.com/SpatialConcepts/Index.html Building memory skills Review the events of the day at the end of each session Use simple nursery rhymes repeated daily Ask what they did before they came to school today Ask what they did yesterday Show the child 4 objects on a tray; cover the tray and remove 1 object; ask the child what is missing Play concentration Ask questions about their favorite things to do Read predictable books and have children tell them back to you Use posted dictation and ask if they remember what they said ONLINE ACTIVITY: Remember and match (images from our site) using our hats matching game. Ask questions about their favorite things to do Read predictable books and have your child tell the story back to you. ONLINE ACTIVITY: Our story, But That Wasn't The Best Part will work well for this Following Directions Begin with games using one-step directions like Simon Says Sing active songs and follow the directions like "Put Your Finger in the Air" Use bean bags to follow 1 simple direction Play games where you ask the children to follow 1 direction (stand up; hop) Expand to 2 and then 3 step directions Give 2 directions (stand up and jump 2 times) Play simple games which require several actions like "Hokey Pokey" Set up an obstacle course and give 2 or 3 directions before the child begins Play "Monkey See, Monkey Do" which requires several visual movements Developing critical thinking skills. Ask open-ended questions whenever possible Set up activities which involve the child in making decisions and in discovering Lead them to discover other ways of performing a task Ask their opinions about things and then ask them why they think that way Ask them what they know about a subject and then set up activities to enable them to learn more Use situation picture cards and ask the child what happened before the event in the picture (ex. a slide with a laughing child at the bottom) and what will happen next Completes an assigned task ask the child to perform a task (clean up a spill, etc.) Notice and comment when the child has performed the task If the task is not performed, try another day and have patience Catch a child doing tasks on his/her own and thank them let children take turns being a leader to build leadership skills be sure to thoroughly explain any task given to a child Knows their parent(s) name (kindergarten teachers request this because so many parents and children have different last names) Let the parent know that you will be working on this skill and why When you say "your mother" to a child also say mother's full name After a few weeks, ask the child her mother's or father's name Play the name game using mother's or father's name Clap the syllables of the parent's names as you say them Knows their address and phone number Play the name game saying the child's name and the street he/she lives on During the day mention the child's address several times when you talk to them Have house stencils in the art or writing center - after the child uses the stencil write their address on the paper Make a book with the child's address on the front and have them dictate a story about their house - read it back occasionally Using a nursery rhyme, sing a song about the child's address (ex. "Sing a song of George's house, 290 Cross Street" to the tune of "Sing a Song of Sixpence" Clap the syllables of the address while saying it After a few days, ask the child their address - if they don't know it keep working on remembering it For the phone number, use the activities above Have a phone stencil in the art or writing area - after the child uses it, write their phone number on the phone Look for the numbers in their phone number in magazines and books Let them cut and paste the numbers in their phone number Knows the days of the week Sing days of the week songs like Greg and Steve's song, "The Days of the Week" Read and/or sing "Today is Monday" together Do a dictation activity using the days and having the children name their favorite Monday food or Tuesday animal or Wednesday color, etc. Do a simple calendar with a paper chain and name and count the days Talk about which days we go to school and which days we stay home Back to Top ©1998, 2018, Susan Jindrich. 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