Category Fun

This is a unit on categorizing for Kindergartners. It spans approximately one week, using 30-45 minutes each day. It incorporates the use of multi-media.

A lesson plan for grade K Mathematics

By Cathy Palmer

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Learning outcomes

The learner will categorize objects and pictures via hands-on manipulation and multi-media software.

Teacher planning

Time required for lesson

3 hours

Materials/resources

• magazines
• books
• photographs
• paper
• crayons
• markers
• pictures
• objects of items in at least 3 categories of your choice

Technology resources

Computer, HyperStudio program, LCD panel or projector, Internet access (nice, but not required), digital camera and/or scanner

Pre-activities

Begin by doing a group activity in which the students sort items by category, such as animals, people, toys, clothing, etc. Use manipulatives as well as photos and/or pictures. Elicit feedback from the students about why each item should be in each group.

Provide manipulatives and pictures to groups of 4 students, giving each student several pictures. Have the group sort them and then present its finished product to the class. Have the group explain why it sorted the items the way that it did.

Activities

As a class, with the teacher doing most of the keyboarding, create a HyperStudio stack, using the LCD or projector.

It may take a day or two of preparation time for the students to gather pictures using magazines, books, photographs from home, crayon or marker drawn pictures and pictures from the Internet (which can be gathered ahead of time by the teacher, or done as a group activity in the classroom).

Use the digital camera and/or scanner as appropriate to capture the pictures to be used in the stack. If you have a digital camera, but not a scanner, you can use the camera to photograph the pictures that the students bring in or draw.

Then get together as a group to create the stack.

The stack is to consist of the following:

• A title page, with Fair Use Statement.
• 3 cards, with titles, representing any 3 of the following categories: animals, people, shapes, food, toys, clothing, vehicles, and colors. You may also choose to add a statement as to why the pictures have been placed in each category.
• A bibliography card (Be sure to reference any magazines or books used, as well as the Internet addresses of any sites from which pictures were pulled.)

Assessment

The teacher is to create a one-card HyperStudio stack, using any of the above named categories. The stack is to have invisible buttons so that the students can click and drag pictures and/or photos into boxes that are labeled by category. Students are to access this stack during their independent computer time on the classroom computer. As each student finishes this activity, they are to print out the stack and turn it in to the teacher for review.

Supplemental information

Check out the online citation information on LEARN’s Homepage with regard to citing Internet resources.

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