The Thistle - An E-Newsletter of Scotch College, Perth, Western Australia

Academic Support

Natural Inquirers: Pre-Primary at work investigating length and measurement

This semester, our Pre-Primary mathematicians have been engaging in investigations. The boys have used their questioning skills to inquire to find out about many numeracy concepts. We started off by exploring different ways to make ten. The boys learned that when they make specific arrangements of counters it is easy to see how many there are without counting by ones. They talked like mathematicians and discovered the Friends of Ten. The boys reflected on their learning by saying:

  • "I know 6 and 4 is 10"
  • "I thought like a mathematician today because I made 5 whites and 5 reds!"

We extended our learning about ten by finding collections. The boys found collections outside and created an arrangement of honky nuts, leaves, sticks, stones and rocks. They learned if they made groups of ten they could count by tens to find their total. Some boys calculated their total by adding groups of ten. This activity was followed up with further learning experiences about ten. The boys made number lines, bead strings, laced plates and coat hangers to show their learning about ten. These reflections sum up the boys' engagement and joy for learning:

  • "We did lots of fun things"
  • "I did the number line and counted by tens."
  • 'I did knitting and counting with ten."
  • "I did my number line and it was good."

Our learning has extended to finding differences between numbers, length and shapes. The boys have learned to talk like mathematicians by using words such as difference, combinations, sequence, estimate, actual, 2D and 3D shapes.

The Pre-Primary class is to be commended for their amazing thirst for knowledge and their ability to understand quite sophisticated mathematical concepts.

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Mrs Janet Lopez
Head of Academic Support