Math will be one of the most challenging subjects your toddler will tackle in school. But, if you teach your child early math skills, it will be easier for him to comprehend this subject. Here are some tips on how you can help your child with math.

Use Math Everyday

The key to promoting your toddler’s math skills is to start on the basics early. Ask for his help when you measure out ingredients for a recipe, pay bills or count how many t-shirts needs to be laundered. Count everything around you – the number of steps from the living room to his bedroom, the trees in your backyard, the buildings you see in the park or the people standing in line.

Drill Your Toddler

It is pointless to make your toddler memorize rules. Let him manipulate objects so he can better understand basic concepts. For addition, have him pile up blocks and then count how many blocks are present. For subtraction, take out one or two blocks and then ask him how many blocks are left. When you buy him ice cream, let your toddler pay and bring you back the change. Count the change together to ensure the change is the exact amount.

Play Math Games

Show your toddler that learning math does not have to be boring. You can play simple math games at home. Here are some fun examples:

• Connect The Dots – let your toddler trace over the numbers that you have written or you can buy connect-the-dot coloring books
• Count and Sort – ask your little one to help you fold and classify laundry, mix up his toys or plastic spoons, forks, knives and cups and let him organize them by type and tally how many there are in each group
• Counting Songs – listen to children’s songs about numbers such as “The Ants Go Marching”, “10 Little Indians” and “Five Little Monkeys”. He will have fun singing along while learning numbers at the same time.
• Make A Call – write a relative’s phone number on a piece of paper and have your toddler dial the number

Ask Questions

For instance, if there are apples on the table, you can say “There are 4 apples on the table. If daddy gets one apple and mommy gets another one, how many apples will be left?”. Encourage him to think out loud and to answer on his own. Do not worry if he does not get it right, what is important is that he is learning.

Teach Your Toddler To Ask For Help

Teach your child that it is perfectly fine to ask for help. Explain to him that if he does not understand a problem, he can ask you, you will not get mad. Once he seeks your help, make sure you are available to help him out.

The best way to help your toddler with math is by showing genuine interest and putting as little pressure on him as possible. When he sees you enjoy math and you show him that math is a part of his daily life, the more inspired he will be to learn.