Need a Valentine’s Day math activity for your preschool math centers? This measurement activity for preschoolers teaching size matching and sequencing, and it includes a free printable to add to your Valentine’s math centers.
Check out all my best math activities for preschoolers here.
Teach Size Sequencing with Measurement Activity for Preschoolers
I don’t know if it was the heart cookie cutters or the “new” math tray, but my preschoolers love this measurement activity and are always asking, “You know, the wood box with the hearts in it? Can I do that activity right now?”
Yes, of course!
Of course, it is ok with me that my preschooler keeps herself busy learning about size differences, sequencing, and even some patterning.
Now, I have to admit something…
I’m kinda’ a sucker for nesting cookie cutters like these. They come around Walmart, Target, and even sometimes the Dollar Store for just about every holiday and I ALWAYS snag a few sets because they are fantastic for teaching a ton of math skills!
And I mean a ton!
And they’re pretty fun for process art, too.
But when I grabbed these heart shaped cookie cutters I had a specific idea in mind.
A Valentine’s tray for my math preschool center.
FAQ About Teaching Measurement to Preschoolers
Most kids are eager to learn concepts of measurement since it’s easy to see real-life applications. Generally, children are introduced to the idea by making matches, comparing sizes, then trying out some non-standard measurement.
In preschool, it’s not developmentally appropriate to use rulers and other standard forms of measurement. Rather, focus on beginning concepts and foundational skills.
In preschool, measurement skills include:
> measuring height, length, and weight in non-standard units
> recognizing quantities that are more and less
> identify most and least in quantities and volume
> identify big, medium, and small, as well as the terms bigger and smaller
> ordering up to 5 objects by size in both ascending and descending order
As with all the other strands of mathematics, the study of measurement provides a foundation for more advanced concepts of measurement that will be learned in later years. These skills are all covered in the Daily Lessons in Preschool Mathematics Measurement Unit.
Measurement lesson plans for preschoolers should include a range of hands-on and engaging activities that are developmentally appropriate. They should be systematic and the skills should progress by targeting the skills listed above.
The Daily Lessons in Preschool Mathematics Measurement Unit includes everything you need to teach measurement skills to your preschooler and takes the guesswork out of teaching measuring skills to preschoolers.
Related Reading
Heart Themed Measurement Activity for Preschoolers
There are a lot of different directions you can take this activity using just two set of nesting heart shaped cookie cutters. Here are a few skills to consider:
- size matching
- sequencing
- comparing
These are all skills related to teaching measurement to preschoolers.
Materials
- nesting heart shaped cookie cutters
- FREE printable from the end of this post
If you want to make your own, it’s really simple. Just trace around each cookie cutter using a color coordinated marker. But the free printable will certainly save you time!
The Set-up
Print and laminate the printable at the end of this post. Cut in half and laminate for added durability.
Place the task cards in a tray with two sets of heart-shaped nesting cookie cutters.
Invite your preschooler to start making matches!
The Heart Themed Measurement Activity
After introducing these cards to my preschoolers, I like to leave the tray in my Valentine’s math center. The printable includes cards with single hearts as well as multiple hearts on the same task card.
The idea is to match the heart cookie cutters to the corresponding hearts printed on the task cards.
The task cards use up to four nesting cookie cutters, so your preschooler will have to not only find the right color to match but also the right size. This adds a little extra challenge for those who need it.
This is more difficult if some of the sizes are missing from the task card because then the preschooler has less information to work with when deciding on which cookie cutter might be the correct size.
There are sixteen different task cards included, meaning you can meet a wide range of skills in your preschool classroom.
Of course, for an even bigger challenge, you can invite your preschoolers to make up new pattern cards, too!
Don’t Forget Picture Books for Valentine’s Day
As with all our other activities, this one was paired with some of our favorite books. I know my kids always look forward to seeing what new books I have to read with our activities, and I’m fairly certain they’d let me read to them all day long if I could.
Below are a few of the books we read specifically for this activity, as well as some others in our Valentine’s home library.
This simple activity is a perfect one to teach kids to measure in early childhood. Through matching heart cookie cutters, preschoolers learn and reinforce sequencing and order skills, measuring skills, size and color differentiation, and puzzles and patterning. And these cite little nesting cookie cutters become a measurement tool, too!
Grab Your FREE Cookie Cutter Task Cards Here
Think this is a math tray you need in your Valentine’s preschool centers? You can grab your own free copy by clicking the image below!
Then keep reading for more free Valentines’s printables and measurement activities for preschoolers, too!
Get Measurement Lesson Plans!
This Daily Lessons in Preschool Mathematics Measurement Unit includes everything you need to teach measurement skills to your preschooler.
Daily Lessons in Preschool Mathematics is a complete and comprehensive curriculum designed to teach your preschooler all five disciplines of math without the boring worksheets!
Looking for More Ideas for Kids to Learn How to Measure?
I’m Sarah, an educator turned stay-at-home-mama of five! I’m the owner and creator of Stay At Home Educator, a website about intentional teaching and purposeful learning in the early childhood years. I’ve taught a range of levels, from preschool to college and a little bit of everything in between. Right now my focus is teaching my children and running a preschool from my home. Credentials include: Bachelors in Art, Masters in Curriculum and Instruction.
[…] in with baking soda! A simple set of heart shape cookie cutters in varying sizes is also a great math activity. Why not use them for tracing […]