How to Teach Your Child to Count?
You can present basic mathematical ideas when the child is 2-3 years old. This age is considered the best period for teaching arithmetic and teaching kids to count.
By the age of 2, the child understands adult’s speech (even if they have only well-developed internal speech and they just start pronouncing words), differentiates “one -many,” “more - less,” “equal.”
Where to start? Teach to count from 1 to 5, then to 10.
Many parents think that if the child counted in the right order once: one, two, three, etc., then they already know how to count and they are teaching kids right.
In fact, the child repeats numbers after parents mechanically. Here’s how you effectively teach counting to preschoolers and kids:
- It’s important to teach the child to count consciously, without confusing the order. First, try to teach them to count correctly by pointing at objects from left to right and start from 5 items. Teach them to count from 1 to 5 first, and then the reverse order - from 5 to 1.
- While reading or playing with toys, ask questions of cardinal (How many objects?) and ordinal (What’s the number?) numbers.
- After the child has counted the objects correctly, change the conditions by mixing the toys, or putting one object away. Then, ask the child to count again.
- Change objects for counting more often. Buy balls and sticks to teach calculation to enhance kids learning.
- You can also buy a child abacus, counting materials of different shapes, special didactic games, and tablets so that the child perceives the information through games.
- After the child has learned to count consciously, you can move to activities with numbers: start to connect auditory perception of a number with its notation (writing).
- You can buy a set of numbers (also a set of letters) and keep it within easy reach.
- While teaching kids, don’t be in a rush; act step by step: move from simple to complex, don’t spend more than 10 minutes on these activities, don’t overload the child with information, repeat what you the child have studied from time to time.
- For example, count to 10 while washing your hands or count the toys when you pick them up.
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