Materials

• SMART Board materials and access to use the notebook file.
• Internet access to play online games related to size order.
• Bags of objects to manipulate (such as used pencils, small toys or dinosaurs) to practice placing in size order.
• Three different sizes of cord or yarn circles (or plastic hula hoops) to define areas for sorting manipulatives. Place cards with the words tallest, taller and smallest to place in each circle.

Step-by-Step Procedure

Day 1:

1. Ask students to give examples of things they think are tall and short and write these responses on a T-chart.
2. Ask children to define the terms Tallest and Shortest and discuss responses.
3. Read the book Big Friend, Little Friend, by Eloise Greenfield, (or a comparable book) aloud to the students. As you read the book, pause on each page and ask the children to compare the size of the children shown. Talk about who is taller and who is shorter. Discuss size place vocabulary.
4. Show two dolls standing side by side. Ask the students to tell which doll is taller and which doll is shorter.
5. Print and complete the Russian dolls size place activity having the children put the dolls in order from tallest to smallest.

Day 2:

1. The students must now line up from tallest to shortest, using a strip of masking tape as the base line. Who is the tallest? Who is the shortest? Have students practice using vocabulary and comparing groups of three children at a time to sort into size places. Let students practice sequencing themselves from shortest to tallest and tallest to shortest.
2. Create an L line in the center of the group to visually estimate the heights of each of the objects using a ruler as the vertical line. Use a strip of tape or ribbon to form the horizontal line and explain that all object MUST share a common baseline to begin measuring in the same place.
3. Place three large plastic dinosaurs of differing heights against the L. Ask students which one would they consider the shortest? tallest? Which would come in between? Why? Use the plastic dinosaurs to model how we can do sequencing from left to right. Tell the students you are going to sort them into size place groups with the tallest dinosaur first , taller next and smallest last. Recall that it is important that the objects share a common base line to begin.
4. Let students practice sequencing other common objects from shortest to tallest and tallest to shortest.
5. Help students explore and practice their new size order placement skills by doing activities provided in the SMART Board "Size Places Please!" lesson. Use each activity to discuss and develop vocabulary related to size order and size placement. Have students choose objects on the screen and put them in order by height.