Math Toys for Toddlers

Babies have the ability to understand numbers and mathematical concepts. It is truly amazing how these tiny creations are so talented, so smart and can easily grasp concepts and learn so quickly.

What are the best Math Toys for Toddlers?

Before you ever purchase any math toys first understand how maths can be taught to babies. The concepts which can be taught to an 18 month old baby are so different than what a 1 year old can grasp.

Once we can understand the developmental milestones, you can purchase simple toys ( preferably with no batteries and no plastic) which can help them understand mathematical concepts easily.

How to Teach Toddlers Math

There are simple methods which you can use to teach maths from a very early age. Nursery rhymes and those silly rhymes where we count things on fingers and toes are helpful for kids to learn maths.

• Count using fingers as this simple activity will help babies link counting words ( one) to objects ( finger or blog or teddy).
• Toddlers learn maths better without objects first. Initially you can just start teaching counting out aloud. Kids love rattling off the numbers 1,2,3,4… They might skip a few, they might forget, but they learn this better by just speaking the numbers out loud.
• Children usually love to count if there is no purpose in counting.Do not try and associate or use objects to teach counting unless the child wants to.
• There are numbers everywhere, the number of fans, the number of toys, number of windows. Kids learn and associate numbers to everyday objects very quickly, Whenever the child is ready start using numbers with everyday objects.
• Kids by Age 3 know many number words
• Kids by Age 4 love Catch my mistake game. This game is an excellent way to teach numbers

Toys for Counting for 2 year olds

First use the verbal method of counting with your child. Let your child simply tell you numbers from 1 to 5 or 1 to 3 … whatever they are comfortable with. Teach them numbers with everyday objects and when they are ready we can assist this learning further using toys.

• Building Blocks with numbers on them are the best toys. They serve many purposes including helping your child learn math skills
• Some blocks have numbers and colours on the blocks. Colours on the blocks help with colour recognition, numbers help with Math skills such as matching, sorting
• Number and Colour blocks help teaching one to one correspondance to kids. In this the child can touch the object in a set only once. So they touch the block and say the number aloud. This requires a lot of practice and patience and can take a lot of time.

Number and images – they learn that number represents a quantity

Number blocks in different shapes

2 samll shapes make one large block

2 triangles make a square

Peg board with numbered pegs

No 1 one peg

2 numbers means you have to place 2 pegs

One year olds

• Recognize patterns
• sort familiar objects by characterisitic – hard, soft
• fill and empty containers
• Night follows day
• Socks before shoes
• Object hidden is still there
• Simple puzzles, whent he puzzle shows the whole object

12 to 18 months

• Patterns – there is an order to the day
• day follows night
• patterns in clothing
• Stringing beads
• magentic shapes
• Peg boards
• Can classify, label and sort ( 18 -24)
• soft, large, small , heavy
• pick up blocks in order of size

18 to 24 months

• Can se number words
• Do not understand quantity
• Understands 1 or 2
• Understands Non verbally and mentally one item added to another makes 2 items
• One items taken from 2 makes 1

2 – 3 years

• Learn important math skills from play and routine
• Symbolic thinking with pretend play
• Recognize patterns with daily activities
• Understand tomorrow, yesterday
• Sort shapes
• Complete Puzzles with 8 pieces or less
• Stack a set of rings on a peg by size
• Understand +, – with 1 and 2
• Use number words without understanding quntity
• Understands 1 and 2
• Count utpto 3 verbally
• Determine number of items in a collection of upto 5 items by using one to to one counting

How to Develop Numeracy in Kids

• Materials that allow children to problem solve and explore the world mathematically
• Blocks and construction materials
• Puzzles
• Patterns
• Sorting – shells, seeds, leaves
• eg: Construction toys – wooden blocks, lego bricks
• Mathematical Relationship can be taught
• Encourage use of positional language and laguage of measurement
• long and short, big and small, over and under
• dots on top of lego bricks
• help join bricks they are inbuilt system ofmeasurement
• complex maths is involved in creating lego creations
• Lego teaches addition, subtraction and fractions – exact pieces to fit and complete