Apr 01 2008
Science and Nature Games
Pictures of the Natural Environment
AGE 2 TO 3 YEARS ONWARDS
How it helps your child
After a walk in the countryside or even time spent in the garden observing nature, you can look together at pictures or books about the natural environment. Encourage him to talk about the pictures he sees and give him new words and information.
You can supplement his learning by making label cards to be placed next to the pictures and you can use the Montessori botany and zoology cards to teach your child more about each plant and animal.
How to play
You can make this into a game by sticking the pictures on to thick card and then cutting each of them up into four, six or eight pieces, to make a puzzle. He can then play with the pieces by himself, putting the pictures together again.
ClassificationCards of Animals and Plants
AGE 3 TO 4 YEARS
How it helps your child
These pictures of animals and plants expose your child to a wide variety of living things, providing the opportunity for discussion which in turn increases his knowledge and helps language development.
What you need
Make a collection of pictures. These can be cut out from old magazines or cheaper books.
The animals could include a variety of mammals, birds, fish, reptiles and insects.
The pictures of groups should be mounted on colour-coded cards so that when they are sorted into types your child can check to see if he has sorted them correctly.
The plants could include pictures of cultivated and wild flowers. Again these could be mounted on to colour-coded card.
Botany cards (see suggestions below) can easily be prepared at home.
Set 1 — Parts of the tree
Set 2 — What leaves do
Set 3 — Tree flowers
Set 4 — Fruits and seeds of trees
Set 5 — Animals that live in trees
Set 6 — Plants that live off trees
Set 7 — Uses of trees
Set 1 — Parts of the flower
Set 2 — Insect pollination
Set 3— Wind pollination
Set 4— How seeds grow
Set 5 — How flowers and insects
How to play
1. This is an activity that should be introduced after your child has actually been out with you and looked at either animals or plants in their natural setting, if this is at all possible.
2. Sitting with your child, go through the pictures of the different animals, talking about them and telling him what group they belong to and what it is about them that distinguishes them as a bird; insect, reptile or mammal. Name the animals and talk about where they live and what they eat.
Then let your child sort the pictures by himself and check to see if he has done it correctly.
Do the same thing with the pictures of plants.
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