Often times when teaching your own children, you scramble around looking for a program or syllabus to give you some structure. Some parents are very good with the “unschooling” method, just going with the flow and being led by the child. Unfortunately, I am not one of those parents. I have all these information in my head that I want to share with my children, I just don’t know where to start. And then I also have a fear that I may have forgotten or missed out teaching them a certain concept. I wish I had a giant checklist of “things to teach my children.”

Well, I don’t have a GIANT checklist. What I do have is a mini checklist of basic math concepts you could use as a guideline for teaching your toddler. It has nothing to do with addition or subtraction but rather concepts such as “size”, “position”, “time”, “quantity” and other things. Very likely your child has already learned some of these concepts through daily interaction. Even if they have, you could still do a quick lesson, just to reinforce it. Understanding these math concepts will help your child be familiar with terminology used by teachers and books later on when they start school. It will also help them to better follow instructions such as “put your shoes on the first shelf” or “line up from shortest to tallest.”

So, here’s the list:

  • SIZE
    big/little, long/short, tall/short, heavy/light, thick/thin, fat/thin, wide/narrow
  • POSITION
    above/below, over/under, top/bottom, high/low, up/down, in front of/behind, beside/by/next to, around, inside/outside, left/right, far/near, first/last, middle/between
  • TIME
    young/old, early/late, fast/slow, yesterday/today/tomorrow, morning/afternoon, day/night, before/after
  • QUANTITY
    many/few, all/none, more/less/fewer/same, empty/full
  • OTHERS
    hot/cold, push/pull, same/different, pairs (matching), straight/crooked

So, how do you teach these concepts to your children? There are a variety of ways. Here are a few:

  1. Look for the concepts in story books. For example, the simple story of The Three Billy Goats Gruff can teach concepts such as big/medium/small, first/second/third and over/under. Let’s not forget Goldilocks and the Three Bears. There are basic math concepts in there too.
  2. Use “real” objects around you. You could show your child a long pencil and a short pencil. How about sorting through a pile of books and deciding which is thin and which is thick. And now is the time to pull out all those jars and tins in your kitchen. Have your child arrange them from big to small or vice versa.
  3. Play games. You could play “where is teddy bear?”. You hide teddy inside a box, under the chair, beside the telephone etc…, give the verbal clue and see if your child can find it. Be a little creative and see if you could come up with your own games. Even a treasure hunt could be a lesson on left/right/forward.
  4. Worksheets. You don’t have to find a “professionally prepared” worksheet. It’s okay to keep it simple. Draw 3 stars on one side and 5 stars on the other and ask your child which is fewer/more? Draw 3 balls and have him circle the middle one. If you are hardworking, I’m sure you will be able to find some free worksheets on the net.

Remember, teaching doesn’t have to be complicated. Don’t think you need to put in hours of preparation. AND a lesson doesn’t have to last for hours. Sometimes, all it takes is 5 minutes for your child to learn the concept.

Happy Teaching!