Colors and shapes are one of the first teachings in preschool and kindergarten that prepares children for the more advanced teachings of reading, writing, and math. It is important for toddlers to master the skills of recognizing colors and shapes because eventually they will use these same skills to discern the differences between letters and numbers.
When toddlers play, they use sorting and classifying skills as they observe similarities and differences of color and shape, they are able to make comparisons, and organize this information into piles. This seemingly simple process is the foundation for living in a mathematical world. Sorting by color and shape prepares toddlers for the future application of these skills like making graphs or searching for a book at the library.
Finally, in order to make learning fun, we have introduced colors and shapes in a wide variety of activities including: puzzles, blocks, painting, sorting, sensorial table, and we even made streets on the floor in different shapes for the toddlers to play!
Teacher Terea