Here's another finger play where children will develop math concepts, small motor skills, and oral language as you entertain them.
Five Little Hotdogs
Five little hotdogs frying in the pan. (Hold up five fingers.)
The grease got hot, and one went BAM! (Clap.)
Four little hotdogs… (Four fingers.)
Three… (Three fingers.)
Two… (Two fingers.)
One… (One finger.)
No little hotdogs frying in the pan. (Hold up fist.)
The pan got hot and it went BAM!
Act It Out
Materials: none
Directions: Choose five children to be hotdogs and stand in front of the room. Number them from left to right and explain that when you point to them in the rhyme they get to shout, “Bam!” and then fall to the ground.
*Let children act out addition problems. “I had 2 hotdogs (2 children stand up). I got 2 more (2 more children stand up). How many in all?”
Missing Hotdogs Materials: red and brown felt, flannel board
Directions: Cut hotdogs out of felt similar to the ones shown. Place five hotdogs on the flannel board and count them with the children. Tell the children to close their eyes while you remove several hotdogs. Have the children open their eyes and identify the number of hotdogs. How many are missing? How did you know that? Continue removing hotdogs with sets of five. *Scatter and count the hotdogs. Place them in a row. How many? Place them in a column. How many? Place them upside down. How many?
Play Dough
Materials: play dough, plastic plates, permanent marker
Directions: Write numerals 1-5 on plastic plates with a permanent marker. Children roll the play dough into hotdogs and place the appropriate amount on each plate.
Clothespin Hotdogs
Materials: spring clothespins, red paper, tape, file folder
Directions: Cut out hotdogs and tape them to the spring clothespins. Draw a frying pan similar to the one shown on a file folder. Cut a slit through the middle of the pan and insert the clothespin hotdogs.
*Children can make up number stories by adding and removing the hotdogs.
Addition
Materials: paper, pencils
Directions: Demonstrate drawing pans (circles) and making hotdogs (vertical lines) to do addition problems.
Make your pan. (Children draw a circle.)
*Children could erase or cross through hotdogs to demonstrate subtraction.
