Kids don’t tend to leap out of bed shouting that they want to learn math but, with these clever tricks and fun games, they just might…
#1. Hopscotch.
Make digits on the floor with duct tape (or paper if you have carpet) and basic numbers are learned whilst leaping. For older kids, you can test their adding, subtracting or multiplying skills by making them hop to the answer.
#2. Merry Pegs.
Draw different numbers of apples (or flowers, or diggers, or animals…) on popsicle sticks and write the corresponding number on the pegs, before challenging your little one to match the right pegs and sticks.
#3. Snack Attack.
Prepare sheets of paper with different numbers of circles drawn on them. Place treats on them and count together (before gobbling them up, obviously).
#4. Growing A Garden.
Using spare pom poms (or colored counters or even real flowers in summer), counting is easy and fun as you piece together a beautiful, multi-colored garden. Or, in winter, decorate a Christmas tree!
#5. Musical Science.
If your little ones love to make a racket, put a sticker with a number on the key of an instrument and ask your kid to recognize or make a certain number by striking the keys. Lots of noise, lots of fun.
#6. Marshmallow Counts.
Cut a big cup out of paper and throw a die, then count out that number of marshmallows onto the paper cup. Eating optional.
#7. More Or Less?
Learning the ‘greater than’ and ‘less than symbols’ is much easier with this funky crocodile (or, like us, remember that the ‘less than’ symbol looks like a capital ‘L’…)
#8. Dress The Snowman.
By changing his numbered hats, kids will have to juggle the number of colored pom poms to match the snowman’s hat.
#9. Apple Fractions.
Appeal to your kids visual learning skills by showing how an apple can be cut into halves and quarters — plus they get a healthy treat each time they get the answer right!
#10. Fractions and clocks.
If your child has already learned fractions, but is struggling with reading the time, use fractions to help them understand quarters and halves.