Mathematical Experiences

Talk to your child drawing attention to mathematical ideas in the world around us and ask questions that need answers in mathematical language.

• We live in the fourth house along our street.
• What shape is that piece of pastry?
• How many stairs have we got to go up?

 

Play with your child. There are many games that have fairly obvious mathematical content and many others provide opportunities for mathematical conversation.

• Snakes and Ladders, Draughts, Ludo, Connect 4, jigsaws
• Is your Lego/Duplo tower taller or shorter than mine?
• Give us each seven cards.
• Follow the picture instructions to make a Lego model

 

Make use of everyday situations. Your child needs to see mathematics at work in real life.

• Can you take the money for your comic from my purse?
• How many knives and forks do we need today?
• How many pints of milk have we had this week?
• Give me the triangular shaped box.

 

Look for situations that are particularly mathematical and and work together on them.

• Make a cake together getting your child to measure the ingredients
• Write out a shopping list for a party putting numbers and quantities
• Programming a video

 

Make an effort to remember that mathematics is not just arithmetic. Mathematics includes logic and geometry as well as measurement and number. This means that it includes planning, sorting and classifying, following instructions - particularly with diagrams, patterns and shapes in two and three dimensions, volume and capacity as well as length, reading scales and dials.

 

Essential Maths skills for Reception children moving up to Year One in September 2018

Essential Maths skills for Year One children moving up to Year Two in September 2018

Essential Maths skills for Year Two children moving up to Year Three in September 2018