Ideas to develop counting and number recognition

· Count on and back with your child whenever you can, in the car counting lamp posts, counting the steps on a staircase, paving slabs in the garden etc.

· When there is something they are looking forward to, such as an ice cream, do a countdown from ten until it arrives.

Singing songs like “10 fat sausages sizzling in a pan” or “12345 once I caught a fish alive” give children good practice at counting down from 10 to zero.

· Make direct comparisons of two quantities when sharing out items between friends or family. “You have got 5 but Emily has got more than you as she has 9” etc.

· Estimating is a skill which improves with regular practise. When out and about encourage your child to estimate first then count, such as “How many dogs do you think we will see today?”

· Make up number stories with your child using their toys, for example, “Little rabbit went out for a walk and met up with two friends. The three of them went to see penguin and elephant. How many are there now?

· Play a game with your child where you show them a number of objects then hide some under a cloth. Can they guess by looking at the remaining ones, how many are hidden? Start off with a small number such as 3 and progress on when they are ready.

· Put a small number of tiny items into a box or tube and shake it. Can your child guess how many are inside? If you add more or take some away, see if the numbers they suggest reflect this.

· Order a given set of selected numbers, e.g. 2, 5, 8, 1, 4.

· Recognise small numbers without counting. Eg Playing dominos and seeing if you can recognise how many spots are on the dominoes and then count to check.

· Use a timer to see how many claps, hops, skips, your child can complete in 1 minutes. Estimate and then count.

Numbers on doors, car number plates, house numbers, prices, clocks, weights and phone numbers.

Watch and play sports that involve scoring, timing, counting and measuring sticky labels.

Later on, this gives opportunities for adding up and subtracting to calculate change. Bath-time is great for simple shape and volume activities - does that beaker hold more water than that plastic cup?

Cooking is good to help your child get to know simple weights and measures. An old-fashioned set of balance scales is ideal. Count out spoonfuls of ingredients. Let your child help you set the timer and count down to teatime! Later on, this is a good way to introduce the idea of ratios and proportions, too. Bear in mind that your child will be learning the metric system at school, so try to measure amounts in grams and kilograms.

Play games that involve numbers and counting. Anything with dice is good, as well as simple card games and bingo. Construction games are helpful in developing spatial awareness (understanding of spaces, objects and how they fit together).

Measure your child's height and show him where the height is on a chart. Provide them with a simple tape measure and get them to measure the length or height of objects in the home. As with weights and measures, try to use metres and centimetres when measuring things with your child.

Add number apparatus to your child's toy collection - counters, a purse full of change, dice, dominoes, a tape measure, ruler, pack of cards, timer, different shapes - and use them to make mathematics come alive.

Encourage your child to count but make it fun and give lots of praise. If you have any other ideas for helping a child learn to count please let me know so we can add them to the list thank you.