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It’s much easier to teach children when they are young. Their brains have the ability to soak up information and they are more willing to listen and even participate in the learning process.
In fact, studies show that children who start learning early will generally be more successful in life. Of course, for this to be really effective you need to choose the best educational centers, such as trying out WillowBee early learning lower north shore.
The obvious starting point with early learning is social skills, followed by language, communication, and the ability to read and write. But, there are plenty of other important subjects that should be considered. Mathematics is an essential skill for life, but how early can you start teaching this?
At Birth
As a parent, there are many ways in which you can teach your child, but one of the most effective and best is through play! The key thing to understand regarding mathematics is that it is really a matter of patterns.
The good news is patterns exist in every part of life. Look at your life with a new baby. There will be a pattern of feeding, nappy changing, sleeping, and not much more.
In the short amounts of playtime you get between the above activities, you can introduce the concept of mathematics to them.
Playing peek-a-boo is fun because it’s a pattern. Your baby knows that you will hide and then reappear. Add in a count before reappearing, such as 1-2-3, and you’re introducing patterns and numbers.
You can literally build on this by stacking blocks and letting your baby knock them over.
Toddlers
This is the stage when your child is most curious and a great time to introduce math properly, as well as getting them into the early learning center.
Start by picking up sticks or something similar and getting your toddler to sort them into sizes. They should also start to count them. You’ll be surprised at how easy this is for them.
Other easy introductions to mathematics at this age include counting steps, skipping, jumping, and hopping. Learning to count while playing si another way they can develop patterns that will help with their understanding of mathematics in the future.
Preschool
This is the ideal time to start taking it a little further. The early learning institute you’ve chosen will be introducing math, and you can help by doing simple sums at home.
The best way to start is by giving them objects. For example, two building blocks and another two. Encourage them to recognize that two plus two is equal to four.
The key thing at this stage is to support the developments that the early learning institute is doing. By being aware of what they are teaching, you’ll be able to continue what they are doing at home and speed up the process of learning for your child.
As they grow and show interest, you can purchase books or locate additional resources on the internet to help them gain the mathematics skills they’ll need in life.
The short answer is you can start teaching mathematics as soon as they’re born; just keep it simple by taking one step at a time.
1 Comment
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Absolutely agree! Early learning sets a strong foundation. Incorporating math through play and aligning with a quality early learning center like WillowBee can make a significant difference. It’s about nurturing curiosity and building essential skills right from the start.