The type of maths that children of this age should be doing, however, is not writing sums, but sorting socks! Children under six years need to 'touch' and 'do' in order to learn, because their memory is very visual and they tend not to remember the spoken word or have the physical skills to hold a pencil easily.
The focus of maths teaching in the Foundation Stage is based on practical activities that can be incorporated into children's play. This will also make it much more enjoyable for them.
Sorting is one of the skills that children need in order to be able to see patterns, understand sizes of numbers and use logic - all essential for them to do well in maths later. They also need to learn how to predict and estimate.
Q I have started to do counting with my three-year-old child at home - is this wrong?
A It is actually quite a good idea for your child to hear you count aloud in everyday situations. These types of everyday activities help children to realise that counting is an important part of life.
At first, your child might simply chant numbers in a random way without actually focusing in on each object. This leads to some lovely sentences such as, 'I can count them. There is one, two, seven and ten.' Don't worry that your child doesn't seem to count carefully - this will come later as they learn to 'match' numbers to objects.
Remember to:
* Point to each object as you count it.
* Take the cue from your child - if he is not interested now, don't worry.
* Talk about numbers in context such as 'there are five buttons on your coat, but only four on mine. You've got more buttons than me'.
Q My child is not bringing home any maths worksheets at all. Will he be learning?
A Writing sums and numbers down is best done once children are able to count, recognise numerals and fully understand what numbers actually do, so worksheets are not suitable for children under six.
The type of maths activities that younger children should be doing at nursery include:
* Sorting by colour, size and shape - this could involve using, say, socks, buttons or shells
* Learning counting rhymes
* Comparing - sizes of objects; weighing and measuring
* Making and noticing patterns
* Playing games which involve counting and matching, such as picture lotto or dice games
* Problem-solving games involving sharing, addition and subtraction.
Q How can I help my child at home?
A There are many everyday activities you can share that will encourage early maths skills.
* Encourage your child to sort things with you - for example, sorting out your laundry into clothes for different members of the family, or looking at different toy cars and grouping them into sets of size or colour.
* Use mathematical language with your child in everyday situations, such as 'larger', 'smaller', 'bigger than'.
* Encourage your child to guess the size or number of things - even though they may be wildly inaccurate, the aim is to get them to be able to predict and estimate. You could say, 'do we have enough cups out yet?'
* Point out numbers as you see them on front doors, buses and car number plates.
* Play games looking at what is the 'same' and 'different' about similar objects, like teddy bears. This encourages children to observe and it will help them remember letters as well as numbers. It also helps develop their thinking processes.
* Encourage your child to do 'big' and 'small' jumps.
