Kitchen Math for Preschoolers

Transform your kitchen time into learning time for preschooler. Possibilities are all around at home utilizing real household items to teach math. Early learning skills start with real things and experiences, where children apply all their senses – all which help new concepts and ideas stick around. Listed here are some easy (and fun) math lessons to do in your very own kitchen that your little one will enjoy.

Sensational Sorter

Set your kid down at the kitchen with a little muffin container (six cup) and let her sort a pile of smaller items into the 6 cups. The pile should contain different amounts of 4 to 6 various items, like; 5 buttons, 4 pennies, 6 peanuts, 4 grapes, 3 fruit snacks, and 5 mini carrots. Sorting is one of the easiest math skills to teach young children, so should be a great starter lesson.

To help your kid with counting, you may put muffin liners in muffin container and write a figure from 1 to 6 at the bottom of every liner. Provide your child with plenty of raisins or nuts and let her put items in every single cup to match with the number written at the bottom of the liner.

Estimation

Having kids practice how to estimate could be a fun prior-to-eating activity. Put down 2-3 baggies filled up with smaller amounts of food or snack items; 12 grapes, 8 carrots, or 10 fish dry crackers. Prior to eating her snack, tell her to guess the number of items in the baggie. Next, ask them to pour out the contents of the bag and count the snacks.

If your kid is able, you can have him recount every time he eats part of the snacks and tell you, “I had _____ snacks; I ate one, now I have _____ snacks left”.

Sandwich Math

Anytime you’re preparing sandwiches is a good time to introduce your child to beginning fractions and beginning shapes. Ask your preschooler if he/she would like you to slice his sandwich into 2 triangles, 2 rectangles, or 4 squares. You will need to demonstrate those shapes once or twice but at some point your kid will eventually become an expert at knowing those shapes. He’ll also be studying the relationship between wholes and parts, making fractions easier to understand.

Biggest to smallest

Give your child a couple of measuring cups. Tell her to line them up on table by order of size, from biggest to smallest. Then, tell her to put something in the smaller cup (like a raisin). Continue as far as interest can last. You can continue by telling her to place 5 raisins in the bigger cup, etc.

Setting the table

Setting table is another good opportunity for your child to practice numbering. Put down a stack of plates and let your preschooler count out the number that is required to set table. Do the same with silverware and dishes.

Kitchen helper

Find opportunities when you’re working in kitchen to let your child assist you. Focus on activities that require number skills or counting. Ask your child to assist you by getting one pickle from the container, 6 crackers from package, or 2 carrots from fridge. When kids help parents in kitchen, learning is fun and natural. Children who practice math skills at home often thrive when they begin school and can put their skills into practice.

One-to-one Correspondence

Try to find simple possibilities for your kid to learn two-to-one or one-to-one relationships, like; If we’ve 4 people and 8 cookies, what number of cookies will every person have? This may work better with children closer to kindergarten age, but children will be very willing to help and try when treats like cookies or snacks are involved!

We know math is an important skill in young learners which is why we teach these concepts in a fun and entertaining way at our preschool & early development centers. If you’d like more information on how to use math concepts at home and school, contact our highly trained teachers today.