|
|
Challenging Math Activities for Young Kids 1) If you don't have a timer of some kind, count out loud evenly..."1 second, 2 seconds..." as children get dressed to see how many seconds it takes them to get dressed. Children will hear the numbers, which will help them learn to count, and they will begin to develop a sense of duration.
2) Discuss the events of the day with your children: first we eat breakfast, then you go to child care or school, then we will go to the park. With your older child, say when events will happen in the morning, afternoon, evening, or night. "In the morning we get up. In the evening we go to bed." This will help your children understand the sequence of events is another pattern. Knowing what comes next helps us find structure in our world and helps children feel secure and confident. 3) Children can also learn to create shapes. Ask your children to draw the shape of the street sign in the air. 
4) Have your children "estimate" how many minutes it will take to walk or drive big sister or brother to school. Using a clock or watch, time how long it really takes and compare your children's estimate with the actual time. "I think it takes 6 hours to walk Marcus to school. No, it only took 5 minutes. Six hours is a really long time." This will help them develop a sense of the passage of time. Children learn by thinking for themselves: let them make their own estimates and then check out their accuracy.
5) Compare to see which takes longer: riding to school on the bus or in a car. Mathematics will help your children answer questions from their own world. 6) Ask children to look for numbers in the environment, like the numbers on street signs, storefronts, or license plates. Talk about the different things people use numbers for - like finding things, naming things, or giving out other information like prices. 7) Practice counting. Ask children to count to a specific number, count until you arrive at your destination, or just count as high as they can go.
| |||
| |
| | |