Sugar Cube Explorations

Sugary Sweet Construction

 

 

 

We were inspired by a sensory bin on Pinterest that included sugar cubes as it's base. 

Since the children were still exploring their ideas around building, constructing and

manipulating materials we decided we would create an invitation for the children to

explore with sugar cubes. We set up the invitation at the table next to the sensory bin.

 

 

At the table, we placed two boxes of sugar cubes, a wooden cutting board, a clipboard, 

and pencils. We were so excited to see what the children would create and build with

the sugar cubes. We like to add paper and pencil to most of our invitations to play so

that the children can record their ideas or wonderings.

 

 

The following day other children became interested in a peer's work. This often

happens as the children share their ideas and wonderings with each other. They worked

together adding rows of sugar cubes stacked on each other.

  

 

The boys continued their explorations with the sugar cubes.

 They began creating animals.

 

 

To conclude their sugar construction they created a person.

 

 

The children continued to choose to work with the sugar cubes for the next several

weeks. Each child would bring new ideas and construction to this open-ended play.

 

One of the children shared with the educator, "I put them in lines connected."

 Next, she counted the cubes and stated, "There are 21 of them."

 

Another one of the children built this structure during play block. I encouraged him 

to record his structure on the whiteboard. He explained how he built with the 

sugar cubes and asked if he could keep his structure on the board for the next day. 

He printed a sign and placed it next to his structure on the board.

 

When we began our animal inquiry we moved the sugar cubes to another area of the

classroom on a small table. We changed the items with the sugar cubes and put the

 silver tray and spoon as a simple invitation for further work with the cubes. The table is

closer to the kitchen space and science area. It has been interesting to see the children add

to the workspace. They have included the tweezers and sugar bowl to this display. Their

explorations continue and just the other day. They used the spoon to scrape one of

the cubes into the sugar bowl. When they were finished they said, "Miss I made sugar."

 

 

 

 

This exploration has shown us so many of the expectations from the Full-Day Early Learning Program. The children have worked together to develop personal and social skills. They have also demonstrated many mathematical skills as they have counted, sequenced, and matched cubes using one-to-one correspondence. We have also seen literacy in their printing of the do not touch signs. As well as all of the oral language skills used to describe, discuss and share their ideas.