Helping Children learn to Count.

With the new school year well underway and children settling into their new classrooms, new teachers and  learning new things as a parent my mind always flicks to how I can help my children more at home.

Maths is a subject which is quite easy to encourage in day to day life, and is such an important skill for children to master, yet its one that is often a struggle.

However learning can begin from any age, and adding educational things into daily life really does help, if you want to you can also find learn at home resources to build on what your child is learning in school and give your child a helping hand at subject they may struggle with.

 Junior Scholars have a whole range of great learning resources to help support children of all ages from 6 months to 16 years. This great website has a huge range of products from study guides, educational board games to wall charts.

Today I have a  guest post from Junior Scholars with lots of tips on how you can help your children incorporate maths into their daily lives no matter what age they are:

Helping young kids learn to count

Some of the first experiences your child will have with numbers will be by counting. In a similar way that a child will learn a nursery rhyme via patterns, they will learn to count. Children typically learn the pattern of counting words by repetition and in the beginning it isn’t unusual for your child to invent numbers or miss numbers out all together. It is important for your child to be given plenty of opportunity to practise counting so they recognise and learn numbers.

There are many ways you can include counting in games or activities you do with your child at home. Here are some ideas as to how you can encourage and help your child to learn to count.

Counting physical objects: Counting physical objects is a great way to start practising numbers with your child. For example, you might count the steps up to the house, the number of eggs in the box, the number of pegs you use to hang up the washing or the number of times you throw a ball in a game of pass.

Nursery Rhymes: It is great to sing nursery rhymes with your children that include number patterns. ‘Baa Baa Black Sheep’ is a traditional favourite. Some other recommendations include ‘Five little Ducks’, ‘One, Two, Buckle My Shoe’ and ‘Ten Green Bottles’.

Simple counting activities: Ask your child to count as far as they can and then encourage them to join you as you continue counting for them. Also consider starting from a number other that one to prepare your child for group activities at school.

Chores: Asking your child to do chores that include counting is a great way to trick them into counting without realising it. Setting the table is a good example because your child will need to count out each place setting. You could also challenge them to tell you how many times they brushed their teeth before bed.

Games: Games are a fun and engaging way to teach your child to count. Some of the household favourites are Dominoes, Snakes and Ladders, card games and any board games that include a die.  Each game helps develop your child’s counting ability as well as reading level.

On holiday: Holidays offer a multitude of opportunities for you to interact with your children and help them with their counting. You can count shells on the beach, boats in the harbour and seagulls on the beach. Try to pick something you know they will enjoy counting so it is fun and exciting. A great one for car journeys is to count cars of a certain colour or model.

As they get older: The older your child gets the more complex the games should get. Ask your child to remember your phone number and then press the correct number into the phone. Telling the time and having your child tell you what the time will be in 3/4/5/6/7 hours time is another counting game.

There are games all around you and you can adapt any menial task into a fun counting game. Get creative and have fun!

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