math

Math Made Easy: Engaging Addition For Kindergarten Dice Activities

October 7, 2024 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

We’re teaching addition for kindergarten by grabbing a handful of dice and spending just a few minutes a day playing games. Also, grab my other tips, ideas, and crafts for kindergarten on my page Kindergarten Homeschool Curriculum.

Simple kindergarten math lays the foundation for essential mathematical concepts which children will build upon throughout their lives.

Math Made Easy: Engaging Addition For Kindergarten Dice Activities

You don’t need a curriculum for math at this level.

There are some key concepts for a child to learn that they can do with just a handful of items and a few minutes playing with you every day.

Besides you want to teach math in an interactive way and make learning a game.

KINDERGARTEN MATH GAMES

First, look at some of these other fun math games for kindergarten.

Add one or two your learning day.

7 Kindergarten Math Games & Resources

Add some of these fun kindergarten math games and resources for hands-on math.

Melon Rind Clumsy Thief Junior Math Game

GAME-CHANGING FUN : A hilarious game of give and take where kids develop confidence and solid math skills. Every player has fun as cards are constantly changing hands!
EASY TO LEARN: Players look at their dealt hand for any two cards that add to 10 to make food stacks. Get stacks from other players if you have a card in your hand that makes 10 when added to the top card of an opponent's stack. Thief cards take food stacks. Trap cards stop the Thief cards. All players are actively adding and snatching. The player with the most cards wins!

ThinkFun Zingo 1-2-3 Number Bingo Game | Perfect for Kids

LEARNING THROUGH PLAY: ThinkFun's Zingo 1-2-3 provides a fun and engaging way for kids to develop critical skills like counting, simple addition, number sense, and word recognition

Math Dice Junior Game - Engaging Math Skills Builder |

MENTAL AGILITY ENHANCER: This game is designed to enhance mental math skills and cognitive abilities among kids aged 6 and up - a fun way to learn.
QUALITY AND TRUST: With over 50 million games sold worldwide, ThinkFun is a global leader when it comes to brain-busting puzzles and engaging games.
CRITICAL SKILLS DEVELOPMENT: The gameplay offers a stealth learning experience where kids can develop early math skills while having fun.

Mathswatters Addition & Subtraction Game - 99 Pieces for Age 5+ Kids,

Swat, Learn, and Win!: Kids grab a swatter, add or subtract, and swat their way to new kindergarten math skills every time they play these fast-paced math games for kids!
Multiple Ways to Play: Designed for 1-4 players, these smart games for kids comes with many ways to play and learn—compete head-to-head, or boost with solo play!

Math Scramble Game,Educational Games for Kids,

BUILD new elementary math skills with this strategy tile game!
RACE to build and solve addition and subtraction equations--first one to use all their tiles wins!
MULTIPLE ways to learn math skills, both solo or with up to 3 friends!

MOBI Kids Fun Math Games for Kids 4-8

✅ Objective: Help build confidence and social skills in children but engages the entire family young and old by teaching and reinforcing basic math skills in a cool entertaining game setting. Parents and teachers will love this for beginner’s.
✅ How To Play: Each player selects one set of number tiles. Each toy set contains the exact same numbers. Players then connect their number tiles to form equations using operation tiles. The first player to connect all their number tiles wins!

Big Time Student Clock, Teaching & Demonstration Clock

Hidden gear mechanism automatically advances the hour hand when the minute hand is manually manipulated

Next, look at these math concepts.

You start teaching them in kindergarten but are also covered in several grades afterwards. So, focus on introduction at this level.

BASIC KINDERGARTEN MATH CONCEPTS

Counting to 100.
Using strategies like counting on, counting back, and using number lines to solve problems.
Skip counting by 1s, 2s, 5s, and 10s.
Counting objects in a set.
Representing numbers with objects, tally marks, and numerals.
Understanding the concept of “more than,” “less than,” and “equal to.”
Recognizing Numbers 0-10.
Associating numbers with quantities.
Recognizing and writing numbers 0-10 from memory.
Ordering Numbers -Placing numbers 0-10 in order from least to greatest and greatest to least.
Understanding the concept of ordinal numbers (first, second, third, etc.).
Comparing two numbers 0-10 to determine which is greater or less.
Using symbols (<, >, =) to represent comparisons.
Addition and Subtraction within 10-Solving simple addition and subtraction problems using objects, pictures, and number sentences.
Understanding the concept of “part-part-whole” relationships.

Of course you will also introduce your child to coin recognition, simple measurement, and other math.

But today we are focusing on concepts like subtraction and addition for kindergarten

With a jar full of dice, some manipulatives like little crackers, pompoms, or coins, and some paper and markers you can teach your child many of these important concepts.

Too, you only need to spend about 15-20 minutes a day ‘playing’ games.

MORE KINDERGARTEN HOMESCHOOL CURRICULUM ACTIVITIES

ADDITION FOR KINDERGARTEN GAMES

First, I like to have a combination of dice with dots as well as those using numbers to practice with.

Then, these glow in the dark ones would also be super fun!

You could use these oversized dry erase dice for any of the games below and customize the numbers for whatever you are working on.

Add it Up- Simply roll two dice and add the numbers together. Once this is mastered you can move on to more than, less than, and equal to. You could also have them practice subtraction this way.

Skills learned: Number recognition, writing or mental math

Math Bingo- Use 1×1” grid paper and trace a 5×5 box, make the center square free. In the rest of the boxes write random numbers from 1-12. Give your child two dice and something small to cover the numbers. They roll both dice and either cover the number on each dice or add them together to get a higher number and cover that. They keep rolling until they get a bingo.

Skills learned: Number recognition, addition.

Dice War- Each person gets 5 dice and each rolls one at a time,the higher number wins, the winner takes both dice and they are added to their pile until someone has all the dice. In the event the same number is rolled just roll again until there is a winner. Once your child has mastered this you can have them tell you the total of the two

MATH ADDITION FOR KINDERGARTEN

Skills learned: Number recognition, addition, comparing, more and less.

Race to 20– Write the numbers 1-20 on 1”x1” graph paper and have your child roll one die, they then begin at one and count on using a manipulative to cover that number. For example, the first roll is a 6 they cover to that, the next is a 4 they cover the next 4 (which would be up to 10) and continue until they have added numbers up to 20.

Skills learned: Number recognition, adding, counting on.

Fill The Cup: Provide your child with a cup, pom poms, and one or two dice. Have them roll and add the matching number of pom poms to the cup. They continue until the cup is full. You can let them add one at a time or make them add the two together first.

Skills learned: Number recognition, one-to-one correspondence, quantity.

Roll It Write It: Have your child roll one die and then write the number as many times as you would like them to practice on wide paper. For children just beginning to write you may want to write with a highlighter and let them trace it with pencil.

Skills learned: Recognizing and writing numbers.

Odd or Even: Have your child roll the dice and tell you if their number is odd or even.

Skills learned: Number recognition, odd/even.

Stack it Up-Have your child practice stacking numbers 1-5 in order of greatest to least and least to greatest. An alternative play to this is giving them a handful of dice and having them sort and stack all odd or all even numbers.

Skills learned: Number recognition, order.

Ancient Egyptian Mathematics: Build a LEGO Math Calculator

September 24, 2024 | 2 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

We’re making a diy lego math calculator. Also, look at my Ancient Civilizations page about Ancient Egypt for more ideas!

Ancient Egypt was an advanced society.

We know that from the structures and texts left behind.

Ancient Egyptian Mathematics: Build a LEGO Math Calculator

The Great Pyramids are one of many structures that are considered marvels in engineering and mathematics for the time.

Math isn’t always a subject kids are excited about.

How did something that has history to the beginnings of society get such a bad rap? That’s a good question.

One of the issues with any academic subject is a desire to keep common people from understanding.

Hieroglyphics themselves were designed as a language of the gods and not meant for common people.

Common people are smart and developed a less complex form of writing called demotic.

Creating barriers to learning has created mistrust in academics from the earliest time in history.

The other issue is human nature. People like what they understand and can do easily.

Complex mathematics systems quickly became more time consuming than many hard working people had time to pursue.

Basic mathematics became an integral part of life just as it is today.

Ancient Egyptian Mathematics: How to Build a DIY LEGO Calculator

Ancient Egyptians used addition and subtraction much like we do today, with one glaring exception… they were missing a zero.

Two other civilizations later developed zero (independently of each other -Indian and Mayan civilizations).

The lack of zero made large numbers very tedious to write and read.

Division and Fractions

Ancient Egyptians didn’t use a common denominator and relied on unit fractions.

Unit fractions have a 1 as the numerator.

Fractions would be written mostly as ¼ + 1/5 + 1/8 + 1/10. Splitting loaves of bread would become a complex task of dividing.

In modern mathematics, that would be simplified by a common denominator of 40.

10/40 + 8/40 + 5/40 + 4/40= 27/40

Many fractions were written using parts of an important symbol, the eye of Horus.

Since fractions are actually division problems. Division became a difficult task using multiple fractions to arrive at an answer.

Multiplication in Ancient Egypt – Rudimentary Calculators

Ancient Egyptian multiplication was a system of duplication that was arduous, but similar to skip counting that we use today.

Let’s work through some examples of Ancient Egyptian multiplication. . I think you might have a deeper appreciation for modern mathematics after these examples.

Multiply 5×8

The answer is 40. This is accomplished by doubling (multiplying by a factor of 2)

What if you are looking for a number other than multiplying by 2,4 or 8?

5×6

2+4=6

Look at those corresponding numbers on the 5s side and add:

10+20=30

What about 5×5?

1+4=5

Corresponding numbers on the 5s side and add:

5+20=25

How to Create A LEGO Math Calculator

You can create your own Ancient Egyptian Calculator using Lego bricks.

I used a basic building board and some odds and ends blocks we had laying around.

Ancient Egyptian Mathematics: Build a LEGO Math Calculator. Ancient Egypt was an advanced society. We know that from the structures and texts left behind. The Great Pyramids are one of many structures that are considered marvels in engineering and mathematics for the time. Your kids will love this fun hands-on math activity. You can create your own Ancient Egyptian Calculator using Lego bricks. Click here to see how!

This calculator is for multiples of 4.

The yellow blocks are the 1s and the green blocks are the multiples of 4 (4s).

To figure out 6 X 4, combine those quantities:

8+16=24 / 6 X 4=24

You could have kids make these for numbers 2-9.

This would be a great way to instill logic into the tedious task of memorizing math facts.

MORE ANCIENT EGYPT ACTIVITIES

Egypt Crafts For Kindergarten Create a Fun Kid Sized Mummy
Learn about another step in the mummification process and make Canopic Jars
Make a beautiful Cleopatra Collar and Cuffs to wear.
Fun Pharaohs and Queens Ancient Egypt Lapbook and Activities
11 Easy Hands-On Ancient Egypt Projects for Middle School
Hands-on Ancient Egypt: Israelite Mud Bricks for Kids

Written by Kim at The Learning Hypothesis.

Looking for more hands-on math fun?

Tick-Tock! How to Make a Hands-on Time Cool Paper Plate Clock

September 8, 2024 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

This hands-on time activity is a creative and engaging way for kids of all ages to learn about telling time.

It’s also a great way to encourage their creativity and fine motor skills.

Let kids take the initiative to be part of the learning process right from the start.

Tick-Tock! How to Make a Hands-on Time Cool Paper Plate Clock

For example, they can paint, cut and write on their own learning manipulative.

This gives them ownership in it and helps them to better retain the lessons they learn.

Whether it is for preschool, kindergarten, or early elementary, this clock will work to teach time to the hour, minute, quarter, and half hours.

First, look at some of these fun books and manipulatives.

Books About Telling Time for Kids

I love to use living books when I can find them, then I like to add games or reference books when we study a topic like this.

9 Time Telling Books for Kids Who Love to Read and Be Read To

Add some of these resources to your day for telling time.Your kids will love hands-on games and ideas.

Clocks and How They Go

Describes the weight clock and the spring clock and how they work.

Turn & Tell Wooden Clock

Educational Details: The clock face has large red numbers to match the hour hand, small blue numbers to match the minute hand, and a segmented color disk to help kids visualize "quarter
past" and "half past

The Secret Clocks: Time Senses of Living Things

Why do some plants blossom only during the day? How do certain birds know when and where to migrate? Why are some people "early birds" and others "night owls"? In this easy-to-read volume, Seymour Simon examines the inner biological clocks of people, animals, and plants and explains what makes them tick.

Perfect Timing Game

TIMES UP: Learn to tell time in this fast paced, fun and cooperative game. The goal of this Perfect Timing card game is to get the clock to the right place just in time.

Time Dice Pair

Jumbo 12-sided dice/manipulative to reinforce basic time-telling skills. Contains 2 dice: (1) yellow with blue numbers 1-12 to designate hours. (1) yellow with red numbers: 00 -: 55 to designate minutes.

The 13 Clocks

The hands of all thirteen clocks stand still in the gloomy castle on a lonely hill where a wicked Duke lives with his niece, the beautiful Princess Saralinda. The Duke fancies he has frozen time, for he is afraid that one day a Prince may come and win away the hand of the Princess—the only warm hand in the castle. To thwart that fate, he sets impossible tasks for Saralinda’s suitors. But when the bold Prince Zorn of Zorna arrives, disguised as a wandering minstrel, and helped by the enigmatic Golux, the cold Duke may at last have met his match.

The Invention of Hugo Cabret

Orphan, clock keeper, and thief, Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity. But when his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric, bookish girl and a bitter old man who runs a toy booth in the station, Hugo's undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy. A cryptic drawing, a treasured notebook, a stolen key, a mechanical man, and a hidden message from Hugo's dead father form the backbone of this intricate, tender, and spellbinding mystery.

Clocks Tell the Time

Man has always found a great need for measuring time. This book begins with very early time-keeping, and goes through water-clocks, sundials and early clocks to modern ones. At the end is the Atomichron, which may be the accurate time-keeper that will go with rockets into space.Early mechanical clocks were worked by heavy weights, and had only an hour hand, as seen in the old clockmaker's shop used on page 4. At that time people did not feel the need to know the exact time, nor had they made a clock accurate enough to tell it. In this age of science, time must be measured exactly. The Atomichron should lose only one second in three thousand years.

Clock Learning for Kids

Unlock the joy of learning time with our practical and functional Montessori toys for babies. Enhance kids' clock learning to tell time with our toy clock.

Then look at some of these teaching tips about telling time.

Tips for Teaching Telling Time

To teach young children to tell time you want to…

Start with the basics- Explain the concepts of hours, minutes, and seconds.

You can use a clock with movable hands to demonstrate how they work like our paper plate clock activity.

Introduce the clock face– Show your child how to find the numbers 1-12 on the clock face.

And explain that each number represents an hour.

Teach your child to tell the hour- Start by pointing to the hour hand and asking your child what number it is pointing to.

Then, say the time out loud, for example, “It is 1 o’clock.”

Move on to minutes- Once your child understands how to tell the hour, you can start teaching them about minutes.

Explain that there are 60 minutes in an hour and that the minute hand moves around the clock face once every hour.

Hands on time activities in particular are the best way for kids to learn to tell time so besides the cool paper plate clock I have to show you today I have seven more hands on time activities.

More Hands-on Time Activities

You have to check out these interactive Free Printable Time Telling Puzzles, be sure to laminate them to make them last.

Play this fun Rush Hour Game – How to TEACH Kids How to Tell Time! and your kids won’t even realize they are learning.

Here you will find 7 Time-Telling Fun Hands-On Time Activities and a Simple Watch Craft that your preschooler can wear all day as they learn.

Telling Time Activity With Free Playdough Mat s

For an activity that helps teach time and also the history of how early peoples kept time you can learn how to Make A Rock Sundial and 20 other fun activities to boot!

Time to Match ‘Em Up is a great matching activity using something that I am pretty sure most of us already have in our home.

How to Make a Paper Plate Clock

Make it colorful and child made, and it will be instantly more interesting to your little learner

You will need:

Paper plate
brad/paper fastener
Cardstock
markers
Craft paint
paintbrush

First, flip the plate upside down and have your child paint it whatever color or colors that they like.

Set the plate aside and let it dry completely.

While you are waiting, use cardstock to cut out two hands.

Cut one slightly shorter than the distance from the center of the plate to the numbers and the other about 1” shorter.

Make holes at one end of the clock hands and push the brad through.

When the plate is dry use a marker to draw on your numbers one through 1-12.

Then use a different color to mark lines to be the minutes in between.

Poke a hole in the center with scissors or a sharp knife and push the brad with the hands through the center of the plate and open the prongs.

Tips:

For younger children, start with a simpler clock face using only the numbers 12, 3, 6, and 9.

To make the activity more challenging, have kids create a clock face with both analog and digital time.

Let each child paint different colored paper plates to personalize their clocks.

Encourage kids to create their own clock designs and decorations, fostering their creativity and imagination.

If your child is old enough to write, pencil the numbers in lightly and let them write over the pencil with a marker to practice writing and help them better retain where the numbers go.

To Play:

Have your child hold the paper plate clock in front of them.

Tell them what time it is, and have them move the string so that the brad points to the correct time.

Move the hands yourself and ask them to give the time.

Call out a time of day and have your child move the hands to match.

Encourage them to practice telling time with their paper plate clock throughout the day.

7 Fun Geometry Hands On Activities For High School

June 10, 2024 | Leave a Comment
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Fun geometry hands-on activities for high school can mean the difference in just getting by and really getting engaged in lessons. Also, look at my page How to Homeschool High School for more ideas.

Just because your child is in high school does not mean that they’ve set aside their love for Lego.

A fantastic way to incorporate Lego into lessons is to use them to create examples and identify angles.

7 Fun Geometry Hands On Activities For High School

We have done Lego math in the past. But you can even use it for high school manipulatives for learning geometry.

First let’s talk about what geometry is.

Geometry is the part of mathematics that we use for calculating the distance around a circle, the angles that make up a triangle, or the amount of room inside of a cube.

We use it daily in art, navigation, in construction, sports, and even simple household tasks like measuring a surface area for wallpaper.

So, you can see why it is a necessary skill for your teen to learn.

7 Fun Geometry Hands On Activities For High School

Next, look at some of these activities.

These activities are a wonderful way to create a break in the typical textbook, worksheet lesson of high school geometry and can help make complicated lessons more understandable.

Look at this LEGO for geometry idea Pythagorean Theorem Lego Proof.
This Geometry Roller Coaster Project is a large scale lesson in engineering and problem solving. Although it’s written for a classroom, it can be used for one or two students.
Using Hands-On Inquiry in High School Geometry gives you ideas for creating some hands-on geometry lessons that include their observations and geometry tools.
Play the Simplyfun Shape Whiz game for an enjoyable lesson to reinforce some basic geometry shape information.
Bonus, this one post includes 5 Geometry Projects for Middle and High School that are fun while
Grab your deck of uno cards and try Using Uno as an Intro to Teaching Proofs for an advanced geometry lesson.
While Geometric Art For Kids is geared to younger kids I still really think it has value and appeal for the high school bunch as well.

Also, look at my post Ancient Greece Unit Study Play Stomachion Like Archimedes {Explore Geometry} to add a math element to your favorite unit study.

The resource Everything You Need to Ace Geometry in One Big Fat Notebook is a fantastic supplement to any curriculum.

In addition, it can be used for independent study and worked well to use with my LEGO activity I have for you today.

Teaching Geometry With LEGO Activities For High School

You will need:

LEGO
LEGO Baseplate
cardstock
Pen

Single row, long LEGO bricks work best for these activities.

And if you need a good basic set of LEGO because you don’t already have them lying around the house this is a fantastic option.

Two ways we discovered to practice basic geometry are through learning terms and identifying examples of them as well as identifying different angles.

The first way I have to practice geometry is a way to introduce or reinforce geometry terms.

Geometry Vocabulary

Point- Indicates a location.
Line-a straight path that extends infinitely in both directions.
Line segment –Part of a line with two endpoints.
Ray- Part of a line that starts at a point and extends infinitely in one direction.
Vertex –The point of intersection of two or more line segments.
Triangle – A shape with 3 sides and 3 vertices.
Angle- is formed of two rays with the same endpoint, vertex.
Parallel lines- Two lines in the same plane that are at equal distance from each other and never meet.
Perpendicular lines– Lines that intersect at a 90 degrees angle.

Write each of these terms onto cardstock and cut them into small strips to create labels.

You can carry out the activity in one of two ways, either create examples of the terms using various LEGO pieces or lay down the terms onto the base plate and have your highschooler create an example by building it with LEGO bricks.

Get creative with using single row bricks to create the examples, use single studs for your points, and make arrows at the end of rays with smaller pieces.

In the same way, create labels for acute, right, and obtuse angles and make examples for your student to match or let them create an example of each using random LEGO pieces.

Because LEGOs are meant to snap together at right angles and not obtuse or acute you will need a little help. Place your long skinny bricks on single studs to lift them above the base plate

You will then be able to swing them around freely to create different angles.

8 Ancient China Activities For Kids | How To Make An Abacus

May 17, 2024 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Hands-on ancient China activities are a great way to get kids interested in learning about the ancient dynasties that once ruled China. Also, look at my post Free Ancient China Lapbook for Kids Who Love Hands-on History.

I have an inexpensive and fun activity today.

It not only acts as a physical example of a tool created by the Han Dynasty but can also be used to practice simple math.

8 Ancient China Activities For Kids | How To Make An Abacus

You can get all the items at your local Dollar Tree.

And it makes this project cost less than $5 and if they are items that you already have on hand, even better it is a free lesson.

Even young children can benefit from the cognitive benefits of sorting and counting the simplest of numbers on an abacus.

But as you will see below there are many ways that older kids can use this simple learning tool.

Move over calculator.

An abacus is an ancient tool that is used for counting.

Made of a framed set of rods with beads or balls, the beads are moved across the rods to make calculations.

This amazing tool was invented in China during the second century BCE (Han Dynasty).

It was used for addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and even more complicated equations.

The abacus is just one of the many amazing inventions that the Ancient Chinese gave to the world.

Among other invention by Ancient China are silk, the compass, acupuncture, tea, paper, gunpowder, porcelain, moveable type printing, and tea.

That is just the short list.

There is much more, and these are still used very much in today’s world. I for one am thankful for hot cups of herbal tea and pretty porcelain cups to sip it out of.

Ancient China Books

First, look at some of these living books.

We try to add living books first then add reference books to round out our study of Ancient China.

12 Books & Resources For Kids Who Love Reading and Being Read to About Ancient China

Add some of these books to your home library about Ancient China. Also, use them for a homeschool unit study.

Zheng He, The Great Chinese Explorer: A Bilingual Story of Adventure and Discovery

In the West, legendary explorers like Christopher Columbus, Ernest Shackleton and Sir Edmund Hillary are a recognized part of our history. But in China, that legend belongs to the great explorer Zheng He (1371–1433), who lived during China's renowned Ming Dynasty. Zheng He, the Great Chinese Explorer is a bilingual (English and Chinese) tale of his adventures.

When he was a child, Zheng He dreamed of foreign lands, his imagination was inspired by the travels of his father and grandfather and the wonderful items they brought back from trading trips to the West. A simple but exotic porcelain vase in cobalt, a color not found in China at the time, drove Zheng He to discover the origins of this unique color—and become one of the most famous explorers in China's history.

Chee-Lin: A Giraffe's Journey

Eighty years before Columbus, China sent ships to explore the world.The Chinese discovered many marvelous things, but one discovery stood out above the others: the chee-lin.This chee-lin was just a giraffe, but to the Chinese it was an omen of good fortune so rare that it had appeared only once before—at the birth of Confucius.

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon

A Time Magazine 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time selection!A Reader’s Digest Best Children’s Book of All Time!This stunning fantasy inspired by Chinese folklore is a companion novel to Starry River of the Sky and the New York Times bestselling and National Book Award finalist When the Sea Turned to SilverIn the valley of Fruitless mountain, a young girl named Minli lives in a ramshackle hut with her parents. In the evenings, her father regales her with old folktales of the Jade Dragon and the Old Man on the Moon, who knows the answers to all of life's questions. Inspired by these stories, Minli sets off on an extraordinary journey to find the Old Man on the Moon to ask him how she can change her family's fortune. She encounters an assorted cast of characters and magical creatures along the way, including a dragon who accompanies her on her quest for the ultimate answer.Grace Lin, author of the beloved Year of the Dog and Year of the Rat returns with a wondrous story of adventure, faith, and friendship. A fantasy crossed with Chinese folklore, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon is a timeless story reminiscent of The Wizard of Oz and Kelly Barnhill's The Girl Who Drank the Moon. Her beautiful illustrations, printed in full-color, accompany the text throughout. Once again, she has created a charming, engaging book for young readers.

Science and Scientists (True Stories From Ancient China)

Ancient China has a long history of scientific excellence. Learn more about some of China’s greatest scientific wonders and the scientists who studied them. Features stories about astronomy, seismology, mathematics, calendar-making, and geography.

The Warlord's Beads (Warlord's Series)

Clever Chuan devises a simple way for his father to quickly and accurately count all the warlord's treasure.

The Five Chinese Brothers (Paperstar)

The classic picture book about five clever brothers, each with a different extraordinary ability, has been in print for almost 80 years."An original nonsense tale told with...spirit and gusto." -- The Horn Book

The Great Wall Of China (Aladdin Picture Books)

Angela FIsher's The Great Wall is an "awe-inspiring, impressive, black and gray illustrations set the tone for this history of the building of the Great Wall of China." (School Library Journal)

The Story about Ping

No one can deny the appeal of the book's hero, Ping, the spirited little duck who lives on a boat on the Yangtze River. Ping's misadventures one night while exploring the world around his home form the basis of this timeless classic, which is brought to life by Kurt Wiese's warm and poignant illustrations.

In the Forbidden City (We All Live in the Forbidden City)

Serving as the seat of imperial power for six centuries, the Forbidden City is one of China's most famous and enigmatic landmarks. Accompanied by a mischievous cat, readers will tour this colossal architectural structure, discovering the secrets hidden inside the palace walls. They will encounter the people who have walked through its halls and gardens, including emperors, empresses, and rebel leaders, and hear exciting tales about the power struggles and intrigues of everyday life.This large format book conveys the grandeur of the Forbidden City through highly detailed line drawings of its buildings, gardens, and courtyards with numerous fold-out spreads. Each page is populated by a large variety of characters and peppered with entertaining anecdotes. Every book includes a plastic magnifying glass for looking at the drawings more closely."Readers receive a lavish tour of the Forbidden City, once home to Chinese emperors and now a museum, courtesy of Chiu and the Design and Cultural Studies Workshop, which he founded. Delicate line drawings highlight the architectural intricacies of the nearly 178-acre complex (several foldout spreads emphasize its size) while Chiu examines the Ming and Qing dynasties in thorough detail, along with major events in the palace's history. (In one foldout scene, 24 emperors offer pithy, even brusque notes on their reigns — "I was entirely unaccomplished," says Emperor Longqing.) A magnifying glass is wisely included to help readers appreciate the wealth of visual detail." — Publishers Weekly

The Emperor Who Built The Great Wall

DID YOU KNOW that China was named after its first emperor – the brilliant, all-powerful emperor who built The Great Wall? In this book, discover why he started building the Wall, how he made China the biggest country on earth, and what treasures he hid in his secret tomb. Find out how he became one of the most important people in the history of China. Read all about the first emperor’s fascinating life in The Emperor Who Built The Great Wall.The simple language and beautiful illustrations make this book a wonderful reader or bedtime story. It is suitable for all ages, but children aged six to twelve years will especially enjoy reading this book.~ About the ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA… Series ~China has a long history, but its many stories are often too complex for children. In this series, Jillian Lin retells China’s best historical tales so they are easy and fun to read. Children will embark on a journey through time where they will get a glimpse inside the colorful lives of famous Chinese figures. Beautiful illustrations, gripping stories, and fascinating facts make these books wonderful readers or bedtime stories for ages six and above. Other titles in this series include:The King Without A Throne (Confucius)The Mountain Man Of Music (Zhu Zaiyu)The Miracle Doctor (Hua Tuo)The Girl Who Became Emperor (Wu Zetian)The Dreamer Of Stars (Zhang Heng)The Greatest Explorer In The World (Zheng He)The Pirate King (Koxinga/Zheng Chenggong)

Where Is the Great Wall?

More than two thousand years ago, with his land under constant attack from nomads, the First Emperor of China came up with a simple solution: build a wall to keep out enemies. It was a wall that kept growing and growing. But its construction came at a huge cost: it is believed that more than a million Chinese died building it, earning the wall its nickname--the longest cemetery on earth. Through the story of the wall, Patricia Brennan Demuth is able to tell the story of China itself, the rise and fall of dynasties, the greatness of its culture, and its present-day status as a Communist world power.

DK Eyewitness Books: Ancient China: Discover the History of Imperial China―from the Great Wall to the Days of the La

A spectacular and informative guide to the history of the great Chinese empire and the customs and traditions of its people. Stunning real-life photographs and lifelike models offer a unique "eyewitness" view of life in imperial China, from its earliest beginnings in the Bronze Age to its final years in the early 20th century. See the stunning bronze work of the ancient Chinese and the beautiful techniques used for Chinese calligraphy. Learn why the First Emperor created the Terracotta Army, what kinds of goods were carried along the Silk Route, who invented paper, and much, much more.

Additionally, look a few ways to use an abacus.

5 Ways to Use An Abacus

Count to 10.
Practice simple addition and subtraction.
Divide and multiply within 10 or higher.
Count by 2’s ,5’s, or 10’s.
Demonstrate fractions.

Here is a more definitive explanation of how to use the compass to perform these operations- Best Way to Use an Abacus For Basic Math Operations.

Next, look at these ancient China activities.

8 Ancient China Activities

Grab a white plate from Dollar Tree and some permanent markers to recreate this Kids Ancient China Activity | How To Make a Simple Ming Dynasty Craft plate, a wonderful keepsake of your study.
Fashion ancient Chinese Bamboo Scrolls with string and wooden craft sticks, use them to write names, silly phrases, and more.
For the kid who loves a fun deep dive on a subject check out my Free Ancient China Lapbook for Kids Who Love Hands-on History it includes a great list of books for reference as well.
Build a Sugar Cube Great Wall of China and talk about the different parts of and the purpose of the wall as you put a length of it together.
Quick and Easy Ancient Chinese Paper making for Kids
Ancient China Mini-Theme Unit.
This idea stands well on its own or is a great way to decorate the outside of a DIY lapbook for the Great Wall- How To Make The Great Wall Of China Out Of Paper.
The History Unboxed -Ancient China Unboxed is affordable and includes some really neat information as well as hands on activities like -Coloring the Great Wall, excavate your own ancient Chinese replica artifact, taste an ancient preparation of tea, decorate and fly an ancient style of kite, and making a magnetic compass.

Finally, look at how to make an abacus.

How To Make An Abacus

You will need:

8×10 frame
10 wooden skewers
100 colorful beads
Hot glue gun/glue sticks

First, remove the glass in the backing from your frame.

You can just throw them away or set them aside for another project.

Cut a skewer to just shy of 8” (about 7 15/16”) to fit it inside the border of the frame.

It needs to fit snug but not bent so that the beads slide freely.

Use it as a template to cut out 9 more to the same length.

Space skewers in the frame and mark the spot on each side so that they are each just a little less than 1” apart and level across.

Remove the skewers.

Then add 10 beads to each skewer.

Too, you can mix colors but I prefer the method of using one color for each line.

Replace the beaded skewers into their spot in the frame and hot glue each end into place securely.

Allow glue to harden completely before moving and using the abacus.

If you want to finish the back you could take a second frame with the back and glass removed and hot glue back-to-back. This will also make it sturdier for extended use.

math

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Geometry Vocabulary

Ancient China Books

5 Ways to Use An Abacus

8 Ancient China Activities

How To Make An Abacus

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