When my twins gave up their afternoon naps, creative quiet time activities saved me as a mom. This simple activity was inspired by one of our favorite Pete the Cat books and works on counting skills. It doesn’t require much set up, materials, or explanation. A win in my book.
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Counting with Pete the Cat
This easy Quiet Time is a combination of math and literacy learning.
Pete the Cat is beloved in our house. We particularly like this tale of Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons. The snappy tune and positive attitude are delightful.
In the literacy basket is:
A copy of Pete the Cat and His Four Grovvy Buttons
A large piece of felt (it was simply the largest I had, yellow would have been better to match Pete’s shirt)
4 Can Lids (ours are recycled juice can lids) labeled 1-4 with a sharpie
Before I put this on their shelf, we did the activity together.
First, lay out the felt and buttons as pictured above.
Next, as you read the story and the buttons pop off, remove a “button” from your “shirt.” We also paused to count and discuss how many were left.
Simple.
Counting using manipulatives.
Bringing a story to life a little.
Tying words on a page to physical objects.
Simple, but meaningful and easily reproduced for any of your favorite stories.
