Toys, Games, and Play Around the World
Celebrating Our Differences, Exploring Our Similarities
by Patricia Horn and Gayle Berthiaume
Guiding Questions
Objectives
Materials / Resources
Engaging and Effective Activities
Assessment Methods
Enrichment/Extension Activities
Differentiation Strategies
Connections
Literature
Guiding Questions
- • How are people around the world alike?
• How are people around the world different?
• How are children around the world alike and different with respect to the ways they use toys and participate in games and play activities?
Objectives
- • Students will explore what toys, games, and play activities are around the world.
• Students are able to articulate which games they participate in.
• Students will discover what toys and games and play activities that they have in common with other students around the world.
Materials / Resources
- • Information questionnaire
• Digital camera
• Computer
• iLife [http://www.apple.com/ilife]
• iWork [http://www.apple.com/iwork]
• Inspiration or Kidspiration [http://www.inspiration.com]
• Graph Club [http://www.tomsnyder.com//products/product.asp?SKU=GRPV20&Subject=Math]
• Comic Life [http://plasq.com/]
• Yahooligans [http://www.yahooligans.com]
• Google Earth [http://earth.google.com]
• Children’s Games Around the World [http://www.topics-mag.com/edition11/games-section.htm]
Engaging and Effective Activities
- Use chart paper, whiteboard, or Inspiration/Kidspiration to record the class responses.
1. Discuss with the class the meaning of the words “games" and "toys.”
- • What is a game or a toy?
• How do children have fun?
• Do children around the world play?
• How do children around the world play?
2. Inform the students that they are to take home a Toys, Games, and Fun Activities questionnaire and have their parents help them fill it out. They are to be returned the next day.
3. Using the returned questionnaires, discuss the games in which the students participate. (Examples: kickball, football or soccer, baseball, red rover, etc.) Make a list and tally of the games the class plays. Make a graph of the various games and how many students participate in each of them, using Graph Club or a Pages Games template. Repeat this activity for the toys and for the other favorite family activities.
4. Using Yahooligans, students can work in pairs to find toys, games, and play activities from other countries. Hint: Limit the searches to the Around the World category. Using Google Earth, the students can find the country.
5. The students work in pairs to make an iPhoto book comparing games, toys, and play from around the world. Photos of toys and play can also be found below. These can be downloaded and imported into iPhoto for student use. Or students can take digital photos of their toys and play.
Assessment Methods
- Create a rubric to assess the student iPhoto books.
Enrichment/Extension Activities
- • The class can make podcasts using GarageBand [http://help.apple.com/garageband/index.html#button-0] explaining their games and fun activities, and then post these on the Apple Learning Exchange Gallery website to share with others.
• The teacher may start a class blog to allow students to tell others about games they like to play.
• The students could learn how to play the new game they discovered in their research and then teach others how to play it.
• Bring the toy to life using speech bubbles and words. The students could use Comic Life [http://www.plasq.com] to create a comic book using digital photos of a toy.
Differentiation Strategies
- • Students could work in groups of various skill levels.
• Volunteers or older students could be used to help struggling readers.
• Universal Access can be used to help students who need assistive technologies.
Connections
- This lesson strengthens the family and home connection by involving parents in the students' lessons. It becomes a starting point for family discussions. Parents can also help the students to become aware of toys, games, and fun activities of different cultures.
Literature
- • 101 Music Games for Children: Fun and Learning With Rhythm and Song (Smartfun Books) by Jerry Storms and Anne Griffiths
• Fun and Games by Ben Rudnick & Friends
• 101 Movement Games for Children: Fun and Learning with Playful Moving by Huberta Wiertsema, Cecilia Bowman, Astrid Sibbes, and Amina Marix Evans
• 101 More Music Games for Children: More Fun and Learning With Rhythm and Song (Hunter House Smartfun Book) by Jerry Storms, Amina Marix Evans, and Jos Hoenen
• The Big Book of Music Games by Debra Olson Pressnall
• Ready-To-Use Music Activities Kit by Audrey J. Adair
• Kids Make Music!: Clapping & Tapping from Bach to Rock! (Williamson Kids Can! Series) by Avery Hart
• 101 Rhythm Instrument Activities: for Young Children by Abigail Flesch Connors
• Curious George Visits a Toy Store by H. A. Rey, Margret Rey, Martha Weston (Illustrator)
• Just a Toy by Mercer Mayer