Finding joy in those little teaching moments is what parenting is all about. Recently, I’ve discovered that math is hiding in plain sight throughout our daily routine—and my toddler is soaking it all up!
“One, Two, Three, Climb!” – Turning Daily Activities into Games
As my daughter has grown, I’ve been thinking of ways to integrate counting into our day. I want to make it fun and natural.
I’ve started counting things that lend themselves to counting easily. For instance, when we climb stairs, I’ve started counting while walking up holding hands (since she’s still a little young to walk stairs independently/safely). Have you noticed how children light up when they recognize patterns in everyday activities?
“More Please!” – When Snack Time Becomes Math Time
Lately both my husband and I have been counting more when it comes to giving her food. I remember when I taught students, they always understood “more” or “less” easily when it came to snack time. A kiddo always knows if someone has more than they do! Food in particular is an easy medium to use numbers and work on requesting skills. “Do you want 1 or 2 blueberries?” “Would you like more blueberries?” “More blueberries.” “More blueberries please.”
Beyond Numbers – Building Language One Berry at a Time
I also remember from working with kids with low language that modeling one word or simple phrases and then saying “say __” before giving the item is a great way to increase language skills. I kind of forget how much I do it because it became so automatic. And my husband does it often now too. If a child is saying 1-word responses easily, work up to 2-word and then 3.
I have noticed my daughter has always been highly berry-motivated. She learned to crawl with blueberry and raspberry incentives on the floor. Recently she’s been asking for blueberries to eat. My husband will model with a question and she’s been responding. What’s your child’s motivation? Every little one has something that can spark their interest!
“Just a Minute!” – The Surprising Ways They’re Always Learning
It first took me by surprise when I casually said to her I would be able to help her in 1 minute, while I was wrapping something up. And she said back to me “1 minute” while holding up her index finger as I just casually had. They are watching and listening to everything! It’s a great reminder to slow down and give them opportunities to respond, and also speak in a way they can copy.
Now that she understood “1 minute,” I’ve played around with other time intervals just to practice and give her exposure, outside of the practical, “you need to wait while mama finishes something.” Which waiting, and being able to wait, should be another whole blog post. But in terms of today, it’s just one more important life skill. The more time I invest in helping her develop these life skills now, the better she’ll be able to independently do all sorts of things for herself later on. Like helping me tidy up, make a meal, go for a walk, etc.
From Intimidating to Inspirational – Making Learning a Family Adventure
It’s been fun diving into counting and colors (seen in my previous blog) more recently. Things that felt important, but also intimidating. But somehow have become fun and a part of engaging family activity time. What a joy to have this time learning and growing together.
Bonus! A Teacher Mom’s Special Resource
If you’re looking for counting resources for your family, I also wrote a counting song back when I taught kindergarten over Zoom. It was a challenging time to teach, and I needed a catchy way to engage my students remotely. I wrote a song that would have a melodic hook that matched number patterns so kids would hear the pattern in the numbers and hopefully help them remember and learn. Here is a link to that counting song. I also have the numbers pop up to match the number that’s being sung.
What counting moments have you discovered with your little one? I’d love to hear your experiences in the comments below!
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