Playtime: Then and Now: Grade 1 Social Studies

This then-and-now objects worksheet asks children to use an adult’s memory or another source to compare objects across time. Ask a grown-up what they played with as a child. Think of something you enjoy playing with today. The illustrated activity includes two prompts and a conversation starter. Read the situation together, then look at the details named in the instructions before choosing, drawing, tracing, or explaining a response. An adult can read the words aloud so the child can concentrate on the idea being explored.

The first prompt is: Draw their play object under Then. Draw yours under Now. The second asks: Compare how people used these objects for play. Begin with a real conversation and use the person’s response as the source for the drawing. Ask a short follow-up if a detail is unclear, then check that the picture represents what was shared.

Start with the adult’s actual memory, an object, or a photograph before drawing the earlier example. Choose a related current object so there is a meaningful comparison of how people used the two. Something may have changed in appearance while its purpose stayed similar. If the conversation shows little or no change, explain that finding rather than inventing a difference. The conversation starter continues the activity: Ask the grown-up to show how their game or toy worked.

Find more illustrated activity collections in the worksheet set library. For another activity on the same topic, explore then-and-now objects printables. Use the page during a short conversation at home or in a small group. Finish by asking the child to explain one observation or decision in their own words; a specific example is more useful than repeating a rule without a reason.