Montessori Activity: Division Board - Static Division (Without Remainder)

AGE: 5.5 years (after the child is familiar with the Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication Stamp Game)

OBJECTIVE(S):

To illustrate the concept of division in a concrete and easy to understand way.

MATERIALS:

1. Division Board
2. Division worksheet
3. Pencil and eraser
4. 1 mat (optional)

PRESENTATION:

1. Read the question i.e. 16 ÷ 4 = ?

2. Pretend that the skittles represent people and the beads represent green apples.

3. Explain that 16 is called the dividend [红利] and it represents the total number of "apples" to be shared.

4. Explain that 4 is called the divisor [除数] and it represents the number of people to share the apples equally.

5. Explain that you are trying to find out how many "apples" each "person" will have, and the answer to this is called the quotient [商数].

6. Count out 16 beads (representing the "apples") and put them into a small bowl.

7. Place 4 skittles (you can also use LEGO figurines) across the top of the board, counting as you go along, and say, "these are people to share those apples in the bowl."

8. Distribute the beads ("apples") from the bowl to each skittle one at a time until there are no beads remaining in the bowl.

9.  Ask your child to count the beads ("apples") under each skittle ("person") and your child should answer 4. Explain that this is the quotient and it means that each person will get 4 "apples".

10. Ask your child to repeat the question, count and write the answer 4 on the paper i.e. 16 ÷ 4 = 4.

11. Invite your child to try the next question.

TIPS:

Start with an easy question first i.e. 8 ÷ 2.

VIDEO DEMONSTRATION:

https://youtu.be/wjvfV0Q4AIs

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Over breakfast this morning, Daddy practised division with our Little FECS (5Y10M2D) using LEGO figurines and 4-in-a-line game chips. J is grasping the concept well, but still needed practice counting out the answer. J asked how much the figurines are wearing funny costume. We explained that it was because they are celebrating "Fastelavn" - a Danish tradition once a year, whereby the children turned up in kindergarten in fancy-dress.

Substituting with LEGO

Montessori Album has a fantastic idea - if you don't have this Montessori materials, not to worry, you can use LEGO man and LEGO - see here:

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

REFERENCES:

http://www.montessorialbum.com/montessori/index.php?title=Division_Board
http://www.infomontessori.com/mathematics/tables-of-arithmetic-unit-division-board.htm
Shu-Chen Jenny Yen's On-line Montessori Album

The division board is available from Amazon:

 

0. Bring the tray over and set up materials as shown above

1. Read the question i.e. 16 ÷ 4 = ?
2. Pretend that the skittles represent people and the beads represent green apples.
3. Explain that 16 is called the dividend and it represents the total number of "apples" to be shared.
4. Explain that 4 is called the divisor and it represents the number of "people" to share the "apples" equally.
5. Explain that you are trying to find out how many "apples" each "person" will have, and the answer to this is called the quotient.

6. Count out 16 beads (representing the "apples") and put them into a small bowl.

7. Place 4 skittles (you can also use LEGO figurines) across the top of the board, counting as you go along, and say, "these are people to share those apples in the bowl."

8. Distribute the beads ("apples") from the bowl to each skittle one at a time until there are no beads remaining in the bowl.

8.  Ask your child to count the beads ("apples") under each skittle ("person") and your child should answer 4. Explain that this is the quotient and it means that each person will get 4 "apples".

10. Ask your child to repeat the question, count and write the answer 4 on the paper i.e. 16 ÷ 4 = 4.
11. Invite your child to try the next question.

You can also use LEGO figures and LEGO bricks in place of the skittles and beads respectively.

If you don't have the division board, don't worry, but keep it simple like the above placing the LEGO bricks directly on the table below each LEGO figure.

If you have the 4-in-a-line game at home, you can also use its chips in place of the beads or...

any other counters such as smileys in place of the beads :-)

You can also use coins, teaching how to share money equally among the LEGO figures.

Here are more pictures of Division using LEGO figures and 4-in-a-line chips

26 Jan 2015 (5Y10M21D) - J trying out the division board with LEGO and 4-in-a-line game chips with Daddy over breakfast this morning

11 Aug 2015 (6Y5M6D) - Division without remainder

Financial Management Game for Children

Objective: To teach the principles of financial management

Game Rules:

1. Set up several signs in different places in the room that read as "Bank," "Store," "Credit Card Company," and "Charity."

2. Give each child some object to represent work they could do to earn money. For example, give an 8-year old some hand towels she could fold, give a 10-year old a broom to sweep the floor. Everyone had work to do so that they could earn.

3. Begin the game with everyone working.

4. After a few minutes, ring the bell and pay everyone 5 DKK (or 1 SGD or 1 USD) each for their labor.

5. The children can decide what to do with their money. They can put it in the bank, they could donate some to charity or they can buy something at the "store." The "Store" is made up of brightly-colored balloons with the names of different toys and the price written on them.

6. The children can also choose to borrow money from credit card company to buy something they really wanted badly.

7. Repeat the sequence several times: work, earn, spend, work, earn, spend.

8. Then blow the whistle and say, "Interest time!"

9. Those who put money in the bank got money added, those who had "borrowed" from the credit card company had to pay interest.

10. After several rounds, the children will figure out that it is much smarter to earn interest than to pay it.

11. As the game progresses, the children will also see that those who choose to donate to charity are doing something meaningful with their money to help to provide food, clothes and other basic necessities for people.

12. Pop some of the balloons when the "interest" whistle blows - this will help your children to realize that many of the material things we work so hard for and even go into debt for don't last.

Additional Information:
This is a fantastic game I have learned from the book "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families."

Useful Links:
- http://www.dfi.wa.gov/financial-education/resources-games.htm

Introducing Kids' First Wallet to Your Child

 

Age: From 4 years old

 

Objective(s):

 

1. To teach your child about responsibility and the importance of managing his/her money.

 

2. To teach your child how to organise his money.

 

3. To develop their math skills

 

4. To lay the foundation for lifelong financial literacy.

 

Materials:

 

1. 1 wallet with a compartment for notes and a zipped compartment for coins.

2. A token of money - this can be in the form of an allowance or earnings your child earns from doing chores

 

Directions:

 

1. Show your child where to keep the notes and where to keep the coins in the wallet.

 

2. On a Date-One-on-One (DOO) with your child, bring him to a store of his choice.

 

3. Let him pick the shopping basket and select an item of his choice.

 

4. Guide him to the checkout queue.

 

5. Guide him to give the cashier the cash and to receive the change back.

 

6. Guide him to place the money back to his wallet.

 

Additional Information:

This was J's first wallet. I got it from the flea market when he was still a toddler. This wallet was first used as a tool for him to learn how to zip and unzipped. Now at 5 years old, this was used to teach him how to use wallet to organise money.

Some experts suggest that a child can have his own wallet at the age of 4, but we started at the age of 5 from the natural progression from the children's bonus system that we have implemented a couple of months ago on 27 February 2014.

J has been earning smileys for the chores he does. Instead of exchanging it for watching Disney Show on TV on Fridays, he chosed to save it up. And he has saved up for the past one month to more than 50 tokens in his piggybank. He chosed to exchange them for cash to be able to spend it (must be the pragmatic Chinese blood in him.)

Today, he (5Y1M8D) took out the tokens and counted them until reaching 50. He exchanged it for 50 DKK (9 USD or 11 SGD). This morning, he was very excited. He wanted to go and buy something with the "money" he has earned.

Although he has made wise choices and went for the cheaper things. He asked me where is the cheapest place he could spend his money. He chose Søstrene Grene himself, without me prompting him. He seemed to know that Søstrene Grene sells things that he could afford. I was just glad that he did not ask me to bring him to BR Toys, as his 50 DKK would not buy him much things.

He decided to spend all his money, but ended up spending 40 DKK, with 10 DKK left in his wallet.

This was the first time he experienced buying things on his own and has the freedom to decide what he wished to buy for the tokens he earned. In this way, the self-motivation to earn rewards comes from himself, although it is controversial whether kids should be motivated by rewards. After spending almost all his money, he said that he can work more next week so that he can earn more money, reinforcing the self-motivation to work and earn money.

My main aim is to teach him a little experience and feel of Maths to figure out how much things cost and compare it with how much he has. On reflection, I hope I am not teaching J how to spend money, instead of how to save money. I hope I am not giving him too much freedom at a young age to decide what he wishes to buy.

Another reason is because I am tired of opening my wallet each time J asks for something. It feels like money just drop from the sky, and I want him to learn that money does not come free. Although I don't always buy him things each time he asks, I am looking for a way where he can earn his own money and spend them as he likes, instead of asking mom to buy things for him.

On hindsight, I should have said that he is allowed to buy one thing, and that he should think through and only buy a really cool thing that he truly likes, instead of buying junk.

It has to be a balanced approach. So well, that was that, our first experience with using a wallet and going shopping :-)

References:

http://kids.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Kid_Wallet
http://www.parents.com/kids/responsibility/money-management/money-milestones-for-kids/
http://childrens-health.lovetoknow.com/child-development/allowance-money-management
http://walletengineers.com/2013/12/05/how-to-teach-your-kids-financial-responsibility-at-an-early-age/
http://familyshare.com/5-easy-ways-for-kids-to-make-money

How to Teach the Value of Money to Your Child?

I wrote in an earlier post that wealth can make the job of raising normal and well-adjusted children more difficult. Wealth contains the seeds of its own destruction, but scarcity can be a great motivator.

How can we help our children to understand the value of money and have empathy for others? I think two words sum it all up:

Service and Giving 

Here are some practical ways to counter that and to teach your child how to live wisely and moderately:

1. Work

Let your child earn money by working. The children's bonus system is one way, whereby your child gets to earn pocket money by helping out with family chore. I read somewhere that research shows that children who participates in household chores are more well-adjusted, have more empathy and self-control.

You can read more about how to implement it here:

http://momlearnings.blogspot.dk/2014/03/childrens-bonus-system.html

2. Service

Create a culture of service in your family. Encourage your child to volunteer his time at a soup kitchen or old folk's home or a children's home. Do it together with your child and start young.

You can read more here:

http://momlearnings.blogspot.dk/2014/03/creating-culture-of-service-in-your.html

3. Giving

Encourage your child to save up and share some of his savings with the less fortunate. Here is one way how:

http://momlearnings.blogspot.dk/2012/02/how-to-teach-children-financial.html

4. Experience sufferings

Instead of booking a luxurious vacation to Europe or exotic Haiwaii, bring your kids to see and help out in the slums of Bangladesh, the orphanages of China and the dirt-path villages of Tanzania. Here are two of them:

http://www.motherteresa.org/07_family/volunteering/v_cal.html

http://www.missionariesofthepoor.org/volunteers.php

5. Do not help your children financially

Don't buy them their own personal iPad, or iphone, or Nintendo, or car (for teenagers). Let them share your iPad. Let them save up to buy the Nintendo.

6. Bring your children on mission trip

For those living in Copenhagen, there is an opportunity from 28 June to 5 July 2014 to visit Poland's families in crisis and the prisoners with Warsaw Volunteer Mission. You can read more about Warsaw Volunter Mission (WVM) here:

http://www.wvm.org.pl/

7. Make restaurant a treat rather than the norm

When I was working full-time, I often bought take-aways for dinner. Then I started working more overtime, and in order to pamper ourselves, we did take-aways from restaurants. Then it wasn't as exciting anymore to just visit restaurants, so we started visiting more up-scale restaurants. The extravagance just snow balled easily. Now that I am working part-time, I cook more at home.

8. Stay at hostel or campsite rather than 5-star hotel

Don't always travel in style. Sometimes choose to stay at hostel or campsite instead.

9. Don't have a maid

Leading a hectic modern life, we are constantly finding ways to help us be more efficient, effective and to squeeze time out for family. One way is to have a maid at home. Ironically, they can also have adverse effects. We become very preoccupied with our needs. As far as possible, try to do without a live-in maid. If you have a helper at home, don't allow your children to leave everything to the helper. Have a set of chores for your child.

10. Reduce the wealth of your family

It is hard. Sometimes the only way that you can convincingly convince your child is by reducing your own wealth. I did so by going part-time, so that I can take a regular day out for volunteer work with J.

If you have more ideas, please do feel free to share.

Montessori Activity: Sorting Coins

Idea from a Chinese Pre-schooler workbook

Age: From 3 years old

Objectives:

1. To get the child familiarize with money.
2. To teach counting coins.
3. To inspire the child to save.

Materials:

1. 4 piggy-banks or purses for each value of coins.

2. 1 bowl containing a handful of coins with different denominations. I have got 1 kr, 2 kr, 10 kr and 20 kr on hand, and thus I use them.

3. 1 tray or mat.

Directions:

1. Demonstrate by putting the 1 kr coin into the piggy-bank meant for 1 kr.

2. Invite your child to sort the coins to the respective piggy-banks accordingly.

Additional Information:

We were doing school this evening and came across this exercise in one of J's Chinese workbooks. I thought it would be too difficult for him and turned over to the next page, but J (3Y3M2D) saw it and wanted to do it straight away. So I let him try. To my surprise, he could do everything. Thus, this exercise inspired me to make a Montessori-style activity with real coins.

I will be collecting more coins to increase my stock. Actually the Danish coins are not so suitable, as the sizes are similar and the number on the coins are very small. I will try to use the Singaporean coins instead.

I use real coins, as it does not cost anything. But if you feel that it would be too inhygienic, you can use toy money, which is available from Amazon:

  http://amzn.to/1NbvTSd

We bought our piggy banks from the Japanese store Daiso in Singapore, but you can get similar ones from Amazon:

http://amzn.to/1X063Tc

Other Resources:

http://teachmama.com/2011/07/playing-with-money-counting-wrapping-estimating-coins.html