A key concept in math for kids is a kind of ‘oneness’, which is basically that each object gets one number. When kids are learning to count they may point to an object and say a whole string of numbers before going to the next object or they may miss a bunch of objects and only count the first and last things. With lots of experiences, children learn to point to each item in turn and say a single number. This is a critical concept not just for kindergarten readiness but for all kinds of later learning. Some children are accurate counters when they start kindergarten for small groups of things; some can correctly count groups of more than 10 or 20! But all kids can benefit from lots of counting fun and from making all kinds of number connectionswhether or not you are working on readiness for kindergarten.

 Let’s start with 1. What are all the different ways of showing 1? One plate on the table for each person. 1 shoe on each foot. 1 day, 1 activity at a time. Have your child choose 1 stuffie or 1 book to read or 1 snack. Together tidy 1 room in the house. Hop on 1 foot. Wave 1 hand. Stand on 1 leg. Color a picture with 1 crayon. Sing 1 song. Are you having a w1derful time?

Last month’s blog was centered on using fairy tales as a tool to promote learning and kindergarten readiness. It’s time to balance that with another kind of literacy, math literacy. Playing and experimenting with numbers in all kinds of natural and fun activities helps children with readiness for kindergarten.
While language is mainly a verbal activity, math is primarily a visual one. When young children say a number they often include a visual sign and show that many fingers. The card in the picture is called a Power Of  Ten card. This one shows two lines of 5 squares that make 10, just like 2 hands of 5 fingers.

Today, when helping your little one, together count 10 fingers and 10 toes. When working in the kitchen, give your child 10 things to line up like fingers, 5 on one side, 5 on the other. 10 plastic bread tags, 10 lunch container lids, 10 blocks, 10 Shreddies, 10 banana chips, 10 Cheerios, whatever is available. Take 10 steps, hop 10 times, put away 10 toys(!), pick up 10 things off the floor, share 10 hugs. Does this catch your atTENtion?