Let's Talk About Math

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Donna Kotsopoulos, Ph.D., Joanne Lee, Ph.D.

Early Childhood

Drawn from the authors' popular LittleCounters® workshops, this guidebook shows early educators, caregivers, and parents how to use purposeful play with children from birth to 5 to promote mathematical thinking and get them ready for formal math instruction.

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STOCK NUMBER	ISBN
75897	978-1-59857-589-7
COPYRIGHT	PAGES
2014	152
AVAILABILITY
Available Stock

Math can't wait. Children who can count with ease before kindergarten have a better shot at future mathematics success—and with this book, it's simple and fun to weave counting and other math concepts into everyday activities. Drawn from the authors’ playful and popular LittleCounters® workshops, this guidebook shows early educators, caregivers, and parents how to use purposeful play with children from birth to 5 to promote mathematical thinking and get them ready for formal math instruction. Packed with easy, no-fear strategies any adult can use—even if you're math-phobic!—this book will help all the teachers in a child's life foster critical early math knowledge and school readiness.

READ THIS BOOK TO

Discover amazing facts about the mathematical minds of babies and young children
Transform ordinary toys into learning tools that help teach mathematical concepts
Organize play environments and activities to encourage math learning
Spot teachable moments and add purposeful math talk to daily tasks
Teach "meaningful counting"—the skill that underpins children's potential for future math success
Infuse math learning into specific daily routines, such as meals, chores, and bedtime
Support children's readiness for formal math instruction
Get started with your own LittleCounters® workshop—or use the principles right away in your program or home

PRACTICAL MATERIALS: Examples and vignettes; sample activities and scripts of adult-child dialogue; recommended counting books and songs; and a detailed introduction to interactive LittleCounters® workshops, where parents and kids learn and have fun together.

See how this product helps strengthen Head Start program quality and school readiness.

About the Authors
Donna Kotsopoulos, Ph.D., and Joanne Lee, Ph.D.
Acknowledgments

Introduction

Chapter 1: Mathematical brains of young children (0-5 years): Sensitivity to quantity/numerosity; Linking numerosity to number words; Counting; Subitizing; Ordinality, ordering numbers, and ordinal numbers; Arithmetic; Chapter Summary

Chapter 2: Purposeful play: Mathematics made playful and mathematizing elements of play; Adults' role in play; Free play; Play-based learning; Purposeful play; Assessing learning through play; Chapter summary

Chapter 3: Counting with your LittleCounters®: Symbolic representations of numbers; LittleCounters®; Chapter summary

Chapter 4: Let's talk about numbers: What is mathematical talk?; What do parents talk about with their young children?; Talk and learning about numbers; Chapter summary

Chapter 5: Other mathematical thinking: Visual spatial reasoning; Visual spatial development; Measurement; Comparison; Adding and subtracting; Patterning and early algebra; Estimation; Proportional reasoning; Ordinal numbers; Chapter summary

Chapter 6: Mathematics in everyday activities and routines: Meals; Bedtime; Chores and helping; Grooming; Organization and time; Chapter summary

Chapter 7: Mathematics education during formal schooling: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics; Readiness for schooling; Narrowing the gap; Gender and mathematics; The role of parents; Teachers and teacher knowledge; Chapter summary

Appendix A: Overview of LittleCounters®

Appendix B: Children’s counting books: Our suggested list of counting books

Appendix C: Children’s songs and poems

References
Index

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Reviews

: Teaching Children Mathematics

"This is a wonderful resource for those in the education field ... in addition to a substantial amount of relevant research, it includes detailed techniques that easily could be incorporated into a child's everyday life."

Herbert Ginsburg, Jacob H. Schiff Foundation Professor of Psychology and Education, Department of Human Development, Teachers College Columbia University

“An up-to-date and accessible review of contemporary research on the development of young children's mathematical thinking … also offers workshops that provide adults with insight into LittleCounters’ remarkable learning and with practical and sensitive methods for stimulating their interesting minds.”

Jo-Anne LeFevre, Director, Institute of Cognitive Science, Carleton University

“An excellent book … I agree with the authors that parents (and others) want to know 'what to do' to help their children be prepared for math learning. This book will tell them what they need to know and help them do it.”

Dr. Francis (Skip) Fennell, McDaniel College, Project Director Elementary Mathematics Specialists and Teacher Leaders Project, Past-President National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

“A carefully organized and sequenced guide to appropriate learning opportunities in mathematics at the early childhood level. ANYONE guiding such learning opportunities will use this book—regularly.”

Authors: Donna Kotsopoulos Ph.D., Joanne Lee Ph.D.