Who has More Bananas
Acting like a monkey is something that comes naturally to just about every child. This game lets them pretend to be a monkey grabbing bunches of bananas from a tree. In each round, children get a random number to read and must find the correct bunch of bananas to take. Then they compare numbers of bananas to see which monkey has the most.
Video Demonstration
Pedagogical Info
When children learn how to compare numbers, they really benefit from seeing the visual representation of numbers. To compare smaller numbers (4 or under), they often use visual clues, like the size of the collections, the arrangement of items in the collections, the amount of space each collection takes, etc. to determine which number is more. When they need to compare larger numbers (5 or above), seeing visual representation of the numbers can provide them a chance to use strategies like lining up the crackers and matching items from each collection in a one-to-one style and determine which collection has more, or when there is a big difference between the two numbers, they can tell by the size of the collections.
So we introduce children to the concept of number comparison with visual representation of numbers. This game provides an opportunity for children to draw random numbers, find the cards with the corresponding number of bananas (visual representations of the numbers), and compare the numbers with the help of seeing concrete representations of numbers.