Kindergarten Math Skills

Help Your Child Master Math Early in Life

In order to help your child succeed in school, parents need to know which skills need to be mastered first. Initially in kindergarten, basic math skills are not centered on numbers. Mastery of these skills early on will help your child understand the concepts of math and numbers.

Identifying Shapes: This skill relates to math by helping kindergarteners grasp the concepts of spatial relationships. This simple concept is the initial building block for geometry and even art.

In kindergarten, the first few weeks will be spent on identifying, drawing, coloring, and counting a variety of shapes. It may seem that these skills are below your child's math level, however in order for your child to grasp the next concepts, it is crucial that your child masters shape identification.

You can help your child master shape identity by sorting shapes. You can also identify shapes throughout a routine day. Point out boxes in the grocery store. Shape identity is fun while driving. Identify the shapes of the signs you pass. You may also want to try an "I spy" game to help your child identify shapes in different forms.

Recognizing Patterns: Pattern skills will be taught very soon after shape identification. As a matter of fact, the first patterns that a kindergartener works on are shape patterns. Patterns help your child make predictions by observation. Later in your child's math classes, these pattern skills will help them understand algebra.

You can help your child develop his pattern recognition skills using household items. Patterns are everywhere. Point out patterns in wallpaper, on clothes, in floor tile, and even on a calendar. You can create pattern play by drawing a shape pattern on paper and having your child identify or draw which shape comes next.

Positional Words: You will find that your child's homework will keep repeating the shape identity and pattern recognition throughout the first half of kindergarten. Positional words are words that describe where an object is in relationship to another object. Positional words add to his understanding of spatial relationships.