Fun with Numbers: Five Activities to Challenge and Delight Your Toddler

Building the right foundation for math skills can be critical for your child’s success. Engaging in fun and educational activities that enhance the analytical skills of your toddler can ensure that he or she gets the right start in learning about numbers. At Discovery Point, we specialize in providing each of our students with the most appealing introductions to counting and other mathematical concepts. Here are five entertaining number activities to share with your toddlers.

Simplified Bingo

A homemade set of flash cards, colorfully decorated laminated bingo cards and washable markers can allow you to teach your toddler about numbers in a fun and engaging way:

• Draw or apply stickers to represent numbers on the flash cards; two fish stickers, for example, would represent the number 2.
• The bingo cards should have simple numbers between 0 and 9.

By marking off the correct number on his or her bingo card as the flash cards are presented, your child can reinforce the associations between the actual number and the numerical symbol that represents it. Once the card is filled, you can award a small treat or gold star to make the experience even more fun for your little one.

Number Treasure Hunt

During a trip around the neighborhood, collecting and recording numbers from street signs, mailboxes and license plates can provide toddlers with opportunities to familiarize themselves with these symbols. Keeping an eye out for the missing numbers can also help your child develop his or her powers of perception. By making these forays into the outside world into delightful treasure hunts, you can inspire your toddler to learn more about real-world mathematics.

Travel Counting Games

Counting vehicles of various colors can turn a simple car trip into a learning exercise for your whole family. For added fun, assign a specific color to each person in the car. This activity provides added practice with recognizing colors as well as counting, making it a valuable tool when preparing your child for preschool or kindergarten environments. Best of all, it can serve as a valuable distraction on what might otherwise be a boring ride to the grocery store or to manage other errands.

Tower Building

Playing with wooden or cardboard blocks can help toddlers develop motor skills and balance. Counting the blocks as they stack up can allow your child to practice his or her mathematical skills and to reinforce lessons already learned. By recording the number of blocks your child stacks each time, you can provide added motivation for improved performance and increased dexterity as your toddler grows and develops.

Guess the Number

This activity involves putting between 1 and 10 objects in a box, bag or jar and then asking your child to estimate the number of items in that container. This can help your child develop a more accurate sense of how numbers affect volume and can provide practical experience in estimating and guessing the number of objects that will fit in a particular space. Your toddler will enjoy this captivating game while learning more about the world he or she inhabits.

The professional educators at Discovery Point can provide the most engaging activities to challenge and inspire your toddler. By working with these dedicated teachers, you can ensure that your child is ready for future academic success and that he or she is presented with the most positive learning experiences in a safe and nurturing environment.