Required Areas of Study

Health

"Health is a positive state of physical, social, and emotional well-being which makes possible a high quality of life for the individual, family, friends and community" (Health Education Curriculum Guide--Grades 1 to 6, Saskatchewan Education, 1977, p. 3).

The educated healthy person is one who understands the basic facts about well-being, who protects her/his own health and the health of her/his family, and who works to improve the health of the community.

Student learning is directed toward the Dual Goals of health promotion and disease/disability prevention. This is achieved by increasing "health-enhancing" behaviours and decreasing "health-risking" behaviours.

The Elementary Level Health Education Program is divided into nine major teaching topics. They are:

body structure, function and growth
fitness, care of the body, and dental health
nutrition
safety and first aid
environmental health
consumer health and health services
mental health
drug education
family life.

Mathematics

The aim of the Mathematics Curriculum is to graduate numerate individuals who value mathematics and appreciate its role in society. The five strands of mathematics introduced at the elementary level include: problem solving, data management and analysis, numbers and operations, geometry and measurement.

The Kindergarten program can work toward the development of the following objectives which are foundational to mathematics. Mathematical activities and experiences should contribute to the development of each child's:

confidence, desire and ability to solve a variety of mathematically related problems
knowledge and understanding of how to collect, organize and interpret numerical data
understanding of numbers, number patterns, counting and estimation
sense of spatial awareness through active involvement in working with two-and three-dimensional shapes
understanding of the basic concepts of measurement.

Some examples of developmentally appropriate activities which work toward the development of mathematical understandings related to the five strands in the Elementary Level Mathematics curriculum guide follow.

Problem solving

This strand emphasizes the understanding of problems, the planning and execution of solutions, and reflection. For Kindergarten students, daily problem solving can be encouraged in the classroom and on the playground. Such problem solving should focus on:

real-life situations
careful observation and discussion with others
students generating alternatives
students choosing alternatives
students reflecting on choices.

In addition to developing intellectual, mathematical understanding, this strand contributes to students' social development. An important question for teachers to ask themselves is "What is the child learning from this intervention process or experience?"

Data Management and Analysis

This strand emphasizes the collection, organization and interpretation of data. For Kindergarten students, a variety of objects, events and activities can be provided for observing, discussing, sorting, labelling and display. Such experiences should focus on:

real-life situations
careful observation and discussion with others
noting similarities of objects or experiences
collecting or organizing according to their own criterion
sorting, classifying and reclassifying.

Important questions for teachers to ask include:

"Tell me about the materials you chose."
"What kinds of groups did you make?"
"How did you get that idea?"
"What other kinds of groups could you make?"

Numbers and Operations

This strand emphasizes the understanding of numbers, number patterns, counting and estimation. Such understanding is best developed through purposeful, concrete experiences and through using manipulatives. The following example demonstrates the integration of this strand with the previous strand (that is, Data Management and Analysis with Numbers and Operations).

Two Kindergarten children were observed playing at a block centre with eight plastic models of dinosaurs. The children first arranged the dinosaurs in a line according to size and counted them. There were eight. Then they decided to arrange them in order of meanness. After deciding that the ones with the biggest teeth were the meanest, they again lined up the dinosaurs and counted them. They both expressed considerable surprise when they found there were still eight dinosaurs.

In another part of the classroom, the Kindergarten teacher observes four children in the imaginative play area and joins their play in the "restaurant" by asking questions:

"May I join you?"
"Is there another chair for me to use? Do you have enough?"
"Tell me about the "special" of the day. How much does it cost?"

There are numerous opportunities for children to learn about numbers through play. They need many concrete experiences with different sets of objects in different situations before their understanding of numbers is firmly established.

Geometry

This strand emphasizes the development of students' spatial awareness through active involvement in working with two and three-dimensional shapes. Such development is most successfully promoted through using manipulative materials and through hands-on, experiential play. The emphasis is on:

handling and exploring with varied materials
careful observation and discussion with others
noting similarities and differences
organizing according to their own criterion
sorting, classifying and reclassifying.

Providing students with cardboard shapes of different sizes and colours, attribute blocks, paper, scissors and crayons and allowing time for exploration through observing, handling, tracing, sorting, comparing and reclassifying will contribute to the students' understanding in this strand. Questions which could guide students' discoveries include:

"How are these shapes alike? Different?"
"If you close your eyes, which shape are you able to find? What is it about this shape that helps you find it?"
"What other things in the room/gym/playground have this same shape?"

Measurement

This strand emphasizes the exploration of concepts such as length, area, capacity, mass, time and temperature. The facilitation of this exploration is accomplished through:

using manipulatives
involvement in practical classroom and outdoor experiences
making careful observations and discussing these with others.

As an example, students' sense of time can be developed by emphasizing tasks and completion of activities:

"Tell me about your picture/construction/ experiment. Where did you get your ideas? If you were to change anything, what would it be? How will you know when your project is finished?"

"You've been working at this painting/castle/ water wheel for a long time. Why?"

When exploring the concept of capacity with pourable substances, questions which could guide students' observations and experimentations include:

"How can you tell which container holds more water? Less water? The same amount?"

Questions to facilitate the exploration of the concept of area with manipulatives could include:

"How many rods can you fit onto the blue circle? How many toothpicks? Is this more than the amount of rods? Less? The same amount? How do you know?

"How many pennies/hands/buttons do you think it will take to cover the circle? How could you check?"

Objectives which Kindergarten teachers can work toward developing through appropriate materials, activities and experiences are outlined in the Scope and Sequence of the Elementary Mathematics curriculum. This scope and sequence of specific learning objectives at the Kindergarten level is not intended to be complete, final or prescriptive. Rather, it provides a source of items from which teachers can generate additional learning objectives that work toward the development of mathematical understandings in the Kindergarten program.

It is not necessary to design a "math" centre in the Kindergarten classroom. Mathematical understandings can be developed through materials and activities at the block building centre, sand and water centre, imaginative play centre, exploration centre, quiet-time relaxation centre, cooking centre, carpentry centre, or through other centres, experiences and projects. Centres, activities or projects devoted to a particular area of study are not the critical component. It is the learning that children acquire through these varied experiences that is important.