If you are a parent or guardian of an infant/toddler/preschooler, you probably spend a lot of time making sure your little one knows how to count, recite ABCs, colors and shapes just to name a few. I am a mother of an imaginative 2-year-old. As an educator, I am guilty of all of this and there is nothing wrong if you do or if you don’t. But we all know that the ultimate goal is for your child to read. But what about preparing for Math skills? What can you do? Here are 5 Math tips to prepare your child for school.
- Counting/recognizing/writing numbers – So your baby can count! Now let’s try recognizing written numbers. Show them the numbers as you say it. Count objects. Have them practice writing numbers. It’s common for them to write numbers backwards for a while. (I saw it in 3rd grade) Just correct them when it happens.
- Recognizing/ Drawing shapes – Look at street signs together and see if they can say the shape. Play I SPY with shapes while you are driving or at the grocery store. Draw shapes or recognize shapes while coloring.
- Spatial Reasoning – Did you know that being able to tell a location is a Math skill? The ball is UNDER the table. The book is ON the shelf. Mommy is BEHIND the tree. Emphasis the use of these words by playing games and narrating what you do. Do you know what else helps with Math and spatial reasoning…LEGOS! Studies have shown that kids who play with legos have a better understanding of Math in school.
- Comparing – Big, bigger, biggest. More than, less than are all words to practice during conversation. “This tree is bigger than ours but that tree is the biggest.” “Which bag has the most jelly beans?” My toy car is faster than my toy bike!” Encourage this dialogue as much as possible.
- Simple adding and subtracting – No, you do not have to see equations to add and subtract, but saying things like, “If I give you one more book, how many will you have?” definitely introduces addition and subtraction. Ask questions at the store and include your child with you while cooking in the kitchen. Those are fun ways to introduce kids to simple Math.
Make learning Math fun, don’t become frustrated if they answer incorrectly. It’s a learning experience. Math is all around us. It’s never too early to introduce Math to your kids!
-Liz
