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Level 4a introduces the first main variation: different-sized rings. If you remember in level 1, I said to hold off on giving all of the rings at once. At that time, we wanted to focus only on putting a ring on the stick. Now, after months of practice, we expect the child to have become very good at that part, so we can introduce a new skill: distinguishing between different sizes.
Primary Goals
- Develop visual discrimination, specifically size gradation.
- Develop fine motor skills.
- Develop hand-eye coordination.
Secondary Goals
- Develop focus and concentration.
Approximate age
12 months
Materials
This is the most popular stacker that you’ll see in children’s stores, so it shouldn’t be hard to find a version. When looking for materials in our house, I try to stick with wood because I know it’ll go in his mouth and I find it just feels nicer to hold because of the weight. I choose the Melissa & Doug rainbow stacker. I remove the top ball and we also don’t use the last blue and purple rings because they are too big.
Presentation
- Begin with 3 discs. The largest disc should be smaller than the child’s hand and the other two should be as far apart size-wise as possible.
- Bring the tray to your child’s work area.
- Wait until your child is looking.
- One at a time, take the rings out of the basket and place them randomly on the ground.
- Choose the biggest ring and carefully place it on the dowel.
- Choose the middle ring and carefully place it on the dowel.
- Choose the smallest ring and carefully place it on the dowel.
- Pause and notice the differences in sizes.
- One at a time, remove the rings from the dowel and place them randomly on the ground.
- Offer the child a turn and move aside.
- When the child is done, have them help put the rings back in the basket and put them on the tray.
- Return the tray to the shelf.
Easier variations
If a child becomes interested in the different-sized rings but still struggles with the fine motor skills necessary to put them on the dowel, use the Level 1 rocking stacker with all of the rings. This version of the stacker allows for more leeway while still focusing on size discrimination.
Extensions
We can increase the difficulty of the stacking by decreasing the amount of variation between the rings (choosing rings more similar in width) or by adding more rings. However, throughout these changes, the largest ring should remain smaller than the child’s hand.
