Chalk Hearts

Time for a little project for Mother's Day. This is a fun little project for starting to understand shapes. We used hearts, since it was Mother's Day, but this is a fun project to do with any shapes, any day.

Materials:

Shapes cut out of thick cardboard

Construction paper (I found dark paper let the chalk show up the best)

Chalk (The more colors the better)

Start by laying down the shape on the construction paper. It's best for the adult to hold it in place so that it doesn't move.

Have your child trace around the outline of the shape. Press as hard as you can with the chalk or go over it multiple times.

Use your finger to rub the chalk away from the center of the shape. This leaves the middle perfectly black and then the chalk color fades out.

Language Key

Talk about the shape as you are making it.

"The heart goes up, around, and down to the middle."

"The other side is just the same, but it goes the other way."

Expansion Ideas

Use this activity with other shapes. If your kids are older, you can put the shapes together to make things. For example, a square with a triangle on top to make a house, or, use circles, ovals and long rectangles to make an animal like a giraffe.

Development Points

Break your chalk into smaller pieces. This will force your kids to hold it in a pincer grip and start getting them to strengthen their muscles and coordination for handwriting.