Kindergarten is the first year your child will attend school. During this year, your little one will be introduced to many new skills in both reading and math. These skills will serve as an essential foundation in the coming school years. Getting the basics right at this stage not only helps your child academically but it is an incredible boost to their confidence.
Help your kindergartner be more successful this year by teaching these math skills every kindergartner needs to know.
Read & Write Numbers
In kindergarten, your child will be introduced to the numbers 0-20. Your kindergartner will be taught to recognize these numbers by sight. In addition to this, your child will learn how to write these numbers independently. If your child already knows these numbers, you can start teaching higher numbers up to 100. Take every opportunity to read numbers – around the house, on the street, at the store they are everywhere, and each success builds confidence.
Count to 100
Counting is an important math skill your kindergartner will need to know. First, your kindergartener will need to be able to count to 100 by ones. This will need to be done quickly without skipping any numbers. You will also want to help your kindergartner skip count to 100 by tens (ten, twenty, thirty, etc.). Skip counting by tens will give your child a basic foundation in place value. It is often helpful to start this concept with written numbers – for example in a number square.
Count Objects
In addition to being able to count to 100, your child will also need to be able to count objects. This can be difficult for children to learn since they can make simple mistakes such as double counting one object or skipping another. Help your child practice this skill by counting skittles or fruit loops. Teach your child to move the object to a separate group after it is counted to help avoid double counting and skipping. Once your child has counted the group, help them write the number down. Teach other skills – when counting items in a book, where you cannot move them, try counting the heads of animals to reduce confusion.
Identify Shapes
Your kindergartener will be taught to recognize common shapes, as well as describe the physical aspects of each shape. Standard shapes include squares, circles, triangles, rectangles, hexagons, etc. In addition to identifying the shape’s name, your kindergartener will also be expected to describe the physical attributes of the shape. This includes the number of sides the shape has and the number of vertices or corners. Introduce one shape at a time and begin with circles and triangles. When you present squares and rectangles try adding them at the same time and highlighting the similarities and differences. I found our children found it less confusing this way.
Kindergarten is filled with many firsts for your child… the first day of school, first school friend, first report card. Math is no different, with many firsts being taught throughout kindergarten. Help give your child a boost in the math department by making these skills a priority this year.
