Visit Don’t Burn Your Feet activityDon’t Burn Your Feet
The floor is lava! Step on the large shapes to safely cross the volcano. Listen for the shape names or properties to know where to step next.
Executive function skills, or EF, begin to develop in early childhood and remain useful throughout life. EF includes the ability to follow instructions to complete a task, stay focused despite distractions, and successfully switch between tasks. Research shows that:
Over a period of weeks or longer:
Over a period of weeks or longer:
The floor is lava! Step on the large shapes to safely cross the volcano. Listen for the shape names or properties to know where to step next.
Abracadabra! In this activity, children take turns using their “magic trick” (counting skills) to figure out what number is on a facedown counting card.
The Guided Activities were created by the University of Denver team led by Douglas H. Clements and Crystal Day-Hess, in collaboration with the University of Minnesota led by Michèle M. Mazzocco. The Denver team included Holland Banse, Christina Mulcahy, and Julie Sarama, and the Minnesota team included Megan Onesti and Jenny Chan. The authors are grateful to their collaborating teachers in the Denver and greater Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan regions who provided valuable constructive feedback on the activities.
In addition, the Math + EF articles written to support the Guided Activities were developed by the University of Minnesota team, led by Michèle M. Mazzocco, with Jasmine Ernst and Sarah Pan.