Parenting Points: Everyday activities help develop early math skills

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 22/10/2015 (3792 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As your young child goes through her day, she is surrounded by opportunities to learn basic math concepts.

It is easy to incorporate this learning into her play. Having a solid understanding of various numeracy skills not only prepares your little one for school, but it also helps her develop observation and problem-solving skills that will serve her in many areas.

You are likely already doing a variety of activities with your child that help promote early math ideas. As you play and interact with your preschooler, notice and take advantage of all the opportunities for reinforcing the use of numbers, shapes, space and other concepts.

Count everything. Remember that your child will learn to say the names of numbers before he learns the correct order. Count with him, and he will eventually learn that the numbers always appear in the same order. Emphasize the final number so he understands that this represents the whole group. “One, two, three, four. There are four wheels on your truck.”

Music and math go together very well. Sing songs that have repeating patterns and rhythms. Clap or dance to the music. Use actions or hand gestures along with the words to show meaning. For example, hold up your fingers during counting songs to show numbers, or use your arms to demonstrate size or shape.

Toys can be used for sorting, organizing and patterning. Separate blocks into piles by colour, shape or size. Start a pattern and ask your child to continue. “Red, blue, red, blue, red, blue … I wonder what comes next?” Line up toys from smallest to largest.

Nesting or stacking cups are helpful for learning about size and space. Your child can use her problem-solving skills as she finds that a small cup will only fit inside a larger cup, or that a tower will be stronger if all the cups are used in the correct order.

Water play is a fun way to experiment with measuring and estimating. Put some water in the sink, bathtub or a plastic basin, and give your child several different sized scoops and containers to dip, fill and pour.

Look for shapes everywhere. Talk about the shapes on your child’s clothing, in picture books, around the house or along your walking or driving route. Ask your child how many circles, squares or triangles he can find.

Make two piles of toys, one twice as big as the other. As you compare them, talk about ‘more or less’, and ‘many or few’.

Math concepts are all around us. Take advantage of everyday opportunities to help your child learn to use numbers and develop number-related problem-solving skills. When she starts school, she will be ready to build these skills even further and put them to practical use in her day-to-day life.

Shawna Munro works at the Elspeth Reid Family Resource Centre, a facility of Child and Family Services of Western Manitoba that offers parenting information and support.

» 255 Ninth St., Brandon

» 726-6280