Handfuls
Activity, Stage 2 – Number Sizes
The setup.
Have a collection of small items that will fit easily in a child’s hand.
How to play.
Show your children the items and ask them to estimate how many of these items they think they can grab with one hand. Give them a little bit of time to come up with an answer, and then collect all the answers. If you have a number line handy, put a mark by each estimate. Take a moment to discuss why some are larger and some are smaller. Finally, have one child grab a handful, count together how many they have, and see which estimates were the closest.
Variations.
Use two hands if you want to get larger numbers. Also, use different sizes of objects to add variety and to produce smaller or larger numbers.