Chinese math resources for kids

I believe that children can larn basic math for costless anywhere.  Math is all around united states of america, and children are built-in with the desire to learn.

Parents are frequently worried about the cost of store-bought resources, time for creating activities, and pressure level of academics. I hope this post can give reassurance, and a 1-page printable summary can exist plant at the end of the mail service.

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While I relish sharing learning games and quality Montessori materials, my children are usually learning basic math skills with lilliputian effort.

When my kids were younger, we didn't have special manipulatives, and nosotros've rarely used workbooks and apps. Currently, my half dozen-year-onetime daughter has been placed in 3rd grade math. Meanwhile, my 3-year-one-time has been learning to count and add.

Their math foundations have been established from daily routine and everyday experiences.

How I'm Teaching My Children Basic Math For Free and Without Workbooks

half dozen Important facts about teaching math to kids

  1. Many parents and caregivers are capable of education their kids math basics.
  2. Concrete concepts should mastered before interpreting symbols (eg, numerals, equations).
  3. Every kid learns at their ain stride. My 2 children are perfect examples of hit milestones often a year or more than apart.
  4. Bones math can exist taught anywhere: indoors / outdoors, home / school / play.
  5. A short spontaneous lesson can be highly constructive.
  6. Children tin learn how to count and practise math in multiple languages simultaneously.
  7. Learning is oftentimes screw rather than linear.

Although many of us grew upwards with workbooks and feel the force per unit area of progressing to the next folio, reviewing the same concept tin can deepen our child's cognition.

How to teach kids basic math for free - counting, addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, fractions

Instruction math at dwelling house series

This postal service is office of a series on education math at home:

  1. How I Taught My Daughter Basic Math For Free and Without Workbooks (This article)
  2. How to Count in Chinese and English with Montessori Materials
  3. x+ Ways to Use a Wooden Hundred Board
  4. ten+ Ways to Employ a Printable Hundred Chart
  5. Multiplication Chart and Pythagoras Board
  6. Teach Kids Fourth dimension with Easily-On Clock Activities
  7. Interactive Calendar Learning Printables

How to teach counting for free

When kids outset learn to count, they are usually counting past rote, for example 一, 二, 三, 四, 五, 六… (yī, èr, sān, sì, wǔ, liù / ane, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6…).

Both of my kids mastered rote counting from hibernate-and-seek, and this fun game offers aplenty opportunity for counting practice!

Initially, they would blitz through the number sequence and lose count. This is common when kids have memorized numbers without knowing what they represent. No worries!

To encourage my kids to improve their counting, I encourage them to count to a high number slowly and demonstrate this myself.

Shhh… permit me share a secret with yous: I tell them that it'southward for "more hiding time" and don't reveal my intent for counting practice.

One-half of teaching is about how you sell a lesson in a way that fits a kid's worldview.

How I taught my children basic math for free - Counting practice with painted rocks
Counting do with painted rocks

Everyday counting opportunities

Along with rote counting, counting specific quantities and one-to-one correspondence should exist introduced.

  • When to outset: Before they speak! Kids are absorbing everything from the commencement. Count fingers and toes, hugs and kisses – this helps them associate numbers with love and affection!
  • What to count – anything that'southward around!
    • Objects: fingers, toes, food (Cheerios, fruit), toys, nature finds (eg, stones, leaves, twigs, pinecones), dress, utensils, recycled bottle caps and paper rolls
    • Motions: steps, stairs, claps, hugs, jumps, swings at the playground.
  • Tips for starting:
    • Begin with lower quantities: "i…2…" And then stop. "That's it! 2!"
    • And then gradually increment the corporeality.
    • Organize what your counting in a line so yous tin can show the start and end.
    • For large amounts, show how to grouping objects by 5s or 10s and then that it'due south easier to keep track.
    • Kids honey to exist active, and counting a large staircase for example can leave emphasizes the grandiosity of big numbers!

Note: you don't need to buy those popular plastic bears or other counters that will eventually end upward in a landfill.

Size, shape, length, patterns

Another skill that can be taught anywhere is comparison object characteristics:

  • Size
  • Length
  • Color
  • Texture
  • Blueprint

This type of math involves grasping and touching everything and moving one's body to figure out the distance.

For example, my kids similar to sort big and small nature finds and phone call them "mommies and daddies" and "babies"!

You can detect anything in your house and group them in the same means. This also teaches them organization skills!

Reaching for window shade chain and learning that it's too far away!
Letting my son acquire that the window shade chain is too far away

I love the moment in the in a higher place film, because the window chain is obviously fashion out of attain for my son. Just he'southward so adamant to try and doesn't even come up close. I let him effort, because he's developing spatial sensation

Teach basic add-on and subtraction for gratis

Math at mealtime

Subsequently counting is established, next comes addition and subtraction.

For case, when my kids ask for strawberries, we can count the number of pieces on their plate.

If they think it'south not enough and inquire for more, this becomes an add-on learning opportunity. Every bit they consume, nosotros can practice subtraction.

Baking is another natural way to teach math. With measuring cups, y'all can teach addition and subtraction by looking at book measurements. They learn that precision can affect taste, and hopefully the result will be delicious!

Addition and subtraction of volume with the Thermos Foogo straw water bottle
Improver and subtraction of volume with the Thermos Foogo straw water bottle

Take notice of what draws your child's attending, because that is what your kid wants to acquire.

On our occasional restaurant dates, my daughter likes to keep track of the table numbers, and she does subtraction past considering how many more tables we have to await for.

As you lot model addition and subtraction in dissimilar settings, your children volition notice more than ways to employ math on their ain!

Add-on and subtraction at the park

The playground is a treasure trove of child-led learning opportunities.

When my daughter is climbing a ladder and has reached the 3rd rung, I might ask, "How many more steps do you need to climb to achieve the top?"

The countdown before going domicile is always an alarmingly effective way to reinforce subtraction! For example, "You lot can go downward the slide 10 more times.  Now you went 3 times, so you have 7 more than changes before nosotros go dwelling house."

How to teach basic multiplication and division for free

Skip-counting, multiplication, and division tin can be taught in a child-led fashion, too!

Remember: work with what's in front of you, and attempt non to stress well-nigh making anything special.

How I'm teaching my children basic math for free - Multiplication with painted rocks
Multiplication with painted rocks

For instance, nosotros tin group rocks by 2s and demonstrate that 3 groups of 2 rocks is equal to 6 rocks (3 10 2 = ii + 2 + ii = 6), and then past 3s, 4s, and so forth.

Last twelvemonth, my daughter learned to skip count and multiply by 5 with a simple manus counting activity!

Other times, you can incorporate information technology with any your child is working on.

Merely this week, we did a quick multiplication "lesson" with a cute turtle weaving arts and crafts that my daughter wanted to make.

We needed 3 craft sticks per turtle, and my daughter wanted to make 3 turtles.  In less than 30 seconds, we reviewed that three x 3 = ix.

The next day, she decided to brand two more turtles, so we discussed that since 3 x 3 = 9 and 3 ten 2 = 6,  9 + 6 = xv, so iii x 5 must equal 15!

Craft stick turtle Yarn Weaving God's Eye Craft
Learning multiplication with crafts

We have as well introduced partition through every day life.

For example, when we are sharing nutrient or toys and want to allocate as, this is relevant case of division.

Most commonly, we are dividing by ii (between siblings), and also by 3 and 4, depending on how many family members are at dwelling!

Cutting watermelon in half - teaching fractions math at home Montessori

Fractions

When we are blistering, I might deliberately select a smaller volume of a measuring spoon to review fractions. If we scoop ane/4 tsp twice, nosotros tin can review 1/4 tsp + ane/iv tsp = 1/2 tsp!

We can also practice fractions when cutting whole food (eg, pie, sandwich, quesadilla, pancake) into equal portions.

Through the human action of cutting, my daughter realized that dividing her sandwich into 1/7 portions was hard!

Accept fun with verbal word problems

Verbal word problems are a fun way to integrate storytelling and math!

We make up funny stories such as:

  • "姐姐 has 73 dresses, 弟弟 pooped on 11 dresses, how many dresses are clean?"
  • "If we bought 12 strawberries from the market place, and everybody in our family wants the same amount, how many strawberries should each person go?"
  • "妈妈 When you are 100 years erstwhile, I will exist 70, and 弟弟 volition exist… 67!!"

Introducing numerals and equations

In all of the above examples of counting and basic math, the concepts did not require number symbols.

Children must agree math in their hands earlier they can hold it in their head.

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This is similar to how learning a language begins with listening and speaking before reading and decoding text.

How to introduce number symbols

  • Indicate them out in the surround: houses, in elevators, mailboxes, page numbers
  • Making numbers with piping cleaners, play dough

Encouraging a love of learning math

Here is ane of my favorite pictures of my daughter, looking for the smallest and largest numbers at the Postal service Office.

Counting practice at the post office - Math is all around us, and children are born with the desire to learn. Before I made any printables and collected educational toys, we established math foundations from routine, everyday experiences. My oldest child has learned everything from counting to multiplication through the simple, free ways detailed in this post. #math #preschool #kindergarten #firstgrade #homeschool
Kid-led counting at the post office

While she called out various numbers in Chinese, my son ran along from mailbox-to-mailbox and tried to mimic what she said.

I had to suppress my urge to blitz onto the next task.

I'chiliad grateful that my children remind me to take intermission and encounter the amazing world of learning from their perspective.

When the rest of the world seems to be worrying nearly which workbook or app become, please remember that gratis, meaningful lessons can be found throughout a regular day.

Chinese math learning for kids

Printable summary of bones math teaching tips

Click below to download a 1-page printable summary when you demand a quick reference!

Have questions about didactics math?

I'd love to hear your thoughts about educational activity math at habitation and how it'due south been going for your family unit.

Feel costless to go out a comment with any concerns or thoughts about your family unit'southward learning journey, and I'll endeavour my best to detect a solution for y'all.

In the meantime, I hope the following articles can be helpful!

More easily-on math resources

  • 15 Math Resource for Children Learning Chinese
  • Fine Motor Math Activities with Leaves
  • Math at Habitation with Montessori (Three Minute Montessori)

Happy learning, friends!