Candy Corn Math Activities

Last year I wrote a post of learning activities using candy corn (or related to candy corn) and as controversial as eating this candy is, it’s clearly a favorite of folks who make printables and learning activities for kids. So this year I wanted to look exclusively at candy corn math activities, which give learning a colorful, triangular twist.

Everyday Chaos and Calm has some simple ideas for using candy corn on basic math activities for preschool and kindergarten, such as estimating and counting candy pieces, measuring the length of an object with candy corn and using them as game pieces for other math games.

Work on one to one correspondence with candy corn by printing out these candy corn counting jars from Math Geek Mama. Each one has a picture of a jar with a number of candy corn pieces in it (the number is also shown) so kids can add the same number to their empty jar on the page.

Learning Lattes and Literacy has printable candy corn counting sheets with ten frames to make it easier to count the number of candy corn pieces. These printables show numbers from 1 to 20 and include both the numerals and the word for the number.

Primary Playground has printable flash cards with numbers and the candy corn shape. You can use these to practice counting with candy corn, pom poms, little erasers, or anything else you have on hand. I love this option with putting little erasers into a cauldron using tongs. It’s math, fine motor skills and seasonally fun. They also have a cute greater than/less than activity for older kids using candy corn.

Make math time into a candy corn shaped puzzle with this activity from 123 Homeschool 4 Me. Each puzzle includes a math fact for multiplication in the orange section and division in the yellow section; the answer to both is the white piece. This is a great activity for third and fourth graders working on multiplication and division up to 18.

Royal Baloo has a great free candy corn math printable pack that’s perfect for kids ages 5-7 or so. It includes candy corn addition and subtraction puzzles, estimating, word problems, skip counting and more.

Next Plan Idea:

Estimating and Measuring with Candy Hearts

The celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is important throughout Mexico and other parts of the world. Her feast day is Dec. 12, and the celebrations honoring her appearance to Juan Diego in 1531 begin a few days before that.

Whether you celebrate yourself or just want to share about the celebration at home or in your classroom, Las Mañanitas: The Beautiful Celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is a good place to start. The book, by Ernesto Joel Vega Rosales and Jeanette Gonzalez Seneviratne, with illustrations by Dana Sanmar, tells the story of a family’s celebration of the feast day in both English and Spanish.

They prepare with a novena, which is nine days of prayers and preparations. The children, Lucia and Pablo, are given special outfits made by their grandmother that look like what Juan Diego might have worn when he saw Our Lady. The book describes the prayers that are made each day, such as a prayer for respect for life, for families and for the indigenous people of the Americas, to name a few.

As told in the book, Juan Diego was a native Mexican born near modern day Mexico City. His given name was Cuaauhtlatoatzin, which means “He who speaks like an eagle.” When he converted to Christianity his name was changed to Juan Diego, and as he walked to church he passed a hill called Tepeyac. One day he heard the birds singing especially beautifully and a voice called him to go to the top of the hill.

There he saw Our Lady of Guadalupe, who asked him to tell the bishop she wanted a chapel built in her name at the foot of the hill. The bishop asked for a sign that Juan Diego really saw her, and later she had him collect flowers that she blessed and take them to the bishop. When Juan Diego dropped the flowers, an image of Our Lady could be seen on his cloak, which is still on display in her basilica to this day.

The feast day is celebrated as mañanitas, which includes singing, indigenous music and dancing, and children presenting flowers to Our Lady. Juan Diego is remembered today as being humble, brave and faithful, and was the first indigenous American made a saint.

The book is colorful and tells the story in a clear way, and it’s fun to have it both in English and Spanish if you teach Spanish or speak Spanish at home or in the classroom. It’s a great way to learn the basics of the celebration and the story of Juan Diego and why he is still remembered today.

About the book: 40 pages, paperback, published 2024 by Loyola Press. Suggested retail price $14.99.

Next Plan Idea:

Have you read?

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