Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary Elementary Activities
Nursery Rhyme Kindergarten Science and Math Elementary Lesson Plan
Mar 7, 2009
As part of a spring elementary lesson plan, or during a nursery rhyme theme unit, use the Mother Goose nursery rhyme "Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary" in kindergarten activities to teach kindergarten science and math skills.
"Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary" Mother Goose Nursery Rhyme
To begin, read the nursery rhyme aloud to Kindergartners. A nice version to use that illustrates well the concept of garden items arranged in a row is included in Nursery Rhymes: Well-Loved Verses to Share edited by Beth Harwood and illustrated by Susie Lacome [Silver Dolphin Books, 2003].
Then, pass out a coloring page version of the story that shows Mary watering her flowers. Have children describe what they see and color the page.
Kindergarten Science Activity – What Do Plants Need to Live?
Tell children that in this science activity, they are going to help Mary set up her garden so that her plants have everything they need to live. Provide them with a big sheet of white construction paper and have them:
- glue a strip of brown paper across the bottom to stand for soil.
- glue down paper cut-outs of flowers or flower stickers to stand for garden plants.
- glue a yellow circle in the sky to stand for sunlight.
- draw a few wavy gray lines in the sky to stand for air.
- glue down a cut-out of a girl with a watering can and draw blue water coming out of it to stand for water.
Provide students with soil, plants, light, air, and water labels to glue in the appropriate spots, or have children with advanced writing skills label each element themselves. Then, discuss how plants need these four things to live.
Kindergarten Math Activities – Teach Spatial Awareness of Rows
Gather a collection of real shells and silver bells or cutout versions (Teachers can use pink foam to cut out shells and tinfoil to cut out bells.). Display the shells and bells, arranging them first in groups and then in rows. Discuss the concept of placing objects in a row and how a person can tell if objects are in a row or not.
Then, pass out real or cutout shells and silver bells and have Kindergartners practice arranging them in straight rows on desktops or tabletops. Provide Kindergartners with sheets of brown construction paper and have them glue down a row of shells, a row of bells, and a row of paper cutout flowers or flower stickers.
- As an extension activity, teachers can have advanced students practice forming shapes with the shells and bells, such as outlines of circles, squares, or triangles.
- For a second extension activity, teachers can introduce advanced students to the concept of rows and columns, and have students count how many rows and columns they have made after arranging the shells, bells, and flower stickers various ways.
Kindergarten Math Activities – Teach Pattern Recognition
Arrange shell and bell cutouts in a repeating pattern. Have students predict what object should come next. Repeat, making a more complicated pattern and perhaps adding flower cutouts to the mix.
After students have practiced completing patterns with teacher guidance, provide them with shell, bell, and flower cutouts and have them practice making and gluing down repeating patterns on their own.
Kindergarten teachers can use a familiar Mother Goose nursery rhyme as the focus for a series of Kindergarten activities to teach science skills and math skills. Linking the activities to the rhyme makes the activities more meaningful and fun for students to complete.
Teachers can also use this nursery rhyme to teach and practice basic Kindergarten skills and Kindergarten phonics skills.
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