Montessori Activity: Introduction to the Stamp Game

AGE: 5 years (after the child is familiar with the decimal system, Static Addition With Golden Beads
and Dynamic Addition With Golden Beads)

OBJECTIVE(S):

1. Practice in the function of quantity.
2. Preparation for the four operations with the stamp game.

MATERIALS:

1. Stamp Game.
2. Introduction to Decimal Quantity Tray
3. Large Number Cards
4. 1 mat

PRESENTATION 1:

1. Introduce your child to the stamp game and compare them with the Golden Bead material to show your child the connection.

2. Place the large number cards 1000, 100, 10 and 1 on the table in a row and say, "unit, ten hundred, thousand."

3. Bring the presentation tray, remove the 1000-cube, 100-square, 10-bar and 1-unit and place them below the large number cards respectively.

4. Show the child the green 1 unit stamp and say, "This is 1. It is the same as the unit bead" and place the unit tile below the unit bead.

5. Show the child the blue 10 stamp and have him say 10. Tell the child that this is just like the ten-bar and place the 10-bar next to the 10 tile.

6. Do the same for stamps of 100 and 1000.

7. Do a Three Period Lesson with the 1, 10, 100, and 1000 tiles.

PRESENTATION 2:

1. Show your child that when taking out the unit stamps, they should be placed below the compartment of the unit stamps in a vertical line. For example, place 5 unit stamps under the compartment of the unit stamps. Do the same with tens, hundreds and thousands.

2. Think and write down a number using a two place value numeral, then three, then four for example 30, 500 and 2000 and compose them with the appropriate stamps 3 tens, 5 hundreds, 2 thousands. Ask your child to pick the respective golden beads - unit beads, 10-bars, 100-squares, 1000-cubes as comparison.

3. Have the child read the stamps.

4. Give your child a number and let him try to pick out the appropriate golden beads and then the appropriate stamps.

5. Let your child try to compose a number and let him pick out the appropriate cards and stamps.

6. Remember to have your child put back the tiles into their compartments after each try.

VIDEO DEMONSTRATION:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nE11yCpwzx8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yP_HORLguX8
http://youtu.be/_Skpyo6ifhc

POINTS OF INTEREST:

1. Seeing a new material which represents a familiar concept.
2. Color of the stamps.
3. Numerals on the stamps.
4. Seeing the different categories in the box.
5. Counting the stamps and finding matching symbols.

REFERENCES:
http://www.montessorialbum.com/montessori/index.php?title=Introduction_to_the_Stamp_Game

The stamp game is available from Amazon: