Early Numeracy

A guide for Parents

It’s not just about numbers

The idea of mathematics for pre-school children can seem a bit daunting. However, at this age a lot of maths is about understanding ideas such as size, shape and pattern, things that most adults would not think of at all. If your child gains an early understanding of these concepts, then this can give him or her, a flying start with number work.

Shapes        

Give your child opportunities to notice and recognise the different shapes around them. Use proper names when talking to children about 3D shapes and encourage them to find things in the house with the same shape. Look at road signs and discuss the different shapes you see.

Counting/Money   

Children enjoy counting real objects. Counting stairs as you take your child up to bed at night time, count buttons on clothes, count the number of apples into a shopping bag, count “pennies” in a money box and save up to buy something.

Make up little games and ask your child to fetch three books, 4 spoons or do 5 claps, 2 jumps etc.

Draw children’s attention to numbers in everyday life. Look for numbers on cars, buses, clocks, houses, telephones. Show your child how to write numbers in a tray of sand or salt.

 Counting Rhymes  

Recite nursery rhymes such as 12345 once I caught a fish alive and read counting books such as, The very hungry caterpillar by Eric Carle.

Pattern   

Helping lay the table encourages children to notice pattern, ie. 1 fork, 1 knife, 1 spoon, 1 plate in each space.

Matching  

Playing matching games with pairs of socks, shoes, gloves and picture cards can be fun. The ability to match lids to pans and tops of bottles is useful too.

Talking with your child while doing an activity will help him/her develop vocabulary of words which describe positions eg. Front, back, up, down, over, under.

Use words such as big, little, long, short, heavy, light, to describe items when you are shopping for food and clothes.

Sorting 

Sort objects into colours, eg Smarties for cakes if you are baking, buttons or toys. Look out for certain colours, e.g. How many red cars do we see on our walk? Objects can be sorted for size, shape and function too.

A collection of seasonal items is useful for developing sorting skills e.g. Leaves in Autumn, shells in Summer, cards at Christmas. Encourage children to notice similarities and differences between things.

Maths at bath time

At bath time let children fill different sized bottles with water and discover which holds the most.

Time

Talk to your child about events in the day, morning, afternoon and night.

Measuring and weighing  

Children like to help with cooking, let them measure ingredients with a cup or spoon and watch you using the scales to weigh and balance. If possible set the time on your cooker to beep when food is ready, this will help make your child aware that it sometimes takes a length of time to cook food.