Math for toddlers – HEALTH FREAK MOMMY

Math Is All About Practice

The more you do it, the better you are at it, that’s Math! Once you stop, your brain tends to get dense and you need lots of practise to start the momentum again. I get Alycia and Sherilyn to do Math equations everyday or at least every other day.

4+2 is ….. four is bigger than two, so put four in your head. Take out 2 fingers, after four is five, six. So four plus two is six.

Here, Sherilyn is solving some Kumon Math additions, which is all about repetition and lots of practising. I don’t send my gals to Kumon class (too expensive). I bought Alycia and Sherilyn some Kumon Math workbooks from MPH, which are not cheap either.

Do you send your kids to Math enrichment classes?

CNY is less than a month away. If you still have not bought any clothes yet, do check out my online store. I’ve uploaded pix of some new arrivals – both free size and larger size trendy clothes that you’ll love!

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New Math Workbooks

These are the Math workbooks that I got the girls from MPH on Friday. Hubs said purchase of books can get rebate from Income Tax, so off we went to a books shopping spree and spent close to RM500. We received some cash vouchers from MPH and we shall shop for books again soon.

The Kumon workbooks cost RM24.90 each, frigging expensive eh?

The contents of the Kumon Math workbook. Kumon is all about practising and practising till your hands turn numb!

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How The Girls Are Spending Their School Holidays

The first week of the school hols have zoomed past us really fast and it was pretty exciting for the girls. The girls’ koong koong and granny were in KL last week for 3 days and there was a lot of bonding time together.

In the morning, the girls are normally up by 7ish am, Baby too. As for me, I am getting up earlier and earlier each day to avoid ‘clashing’ with the gals’ waking up time, coz if it clashes, shiaks, my only me time would be gone. I really need my me time, I need a respite, I need time to run or work out in the gym. I am normally up by 5ish am and would leave the house by 6:45am to exercise. On days when Alycia and Sherilyn are up before I leave the house, they would pester me to bring them along. On Tuesday, all 3 girls woke up at 6:30am. So I strapped Baby in the stroller and brought Alycia along with me when I jogged at the lobby of our condo. Rascal #2 of course protested that she couldn’t go and I told her that she can follow me the next day. On Wednesday, rascal #2 followed me, with me lugging Baby along on her stroller.

On Friday, we went to Mid Valley and Gardens for shopping. I bought a stack of Math workbooks for Alycia and Sherilyn for them to brush up their Math. With the workbooks, I don’t need to write and set my own questions for them.

After lunch each day, Alycia and Sherilyn will take their shower. After shower, it’s Math and reading time. I will set 20 Math equations each for Alycia and Sherilyn. During this time, Baby doesn’t want to be left out and would normally latch on my boobies as she listens to me teaching her 2 jie jies. I hope she’s also absorbing everything that I teach her jie jies.

Here’s Alycia, all absorbed in solving her Math questions…

What motivates the girls is a big, big star when they get all correct, hehe. Kids, they are so easily satisfied.

Sherilyn solving her Math addition….

“10+5 is? Hmmmm……10 is bigger than 5, so I put 10 in my head and take out 5 fingers. After 10 is 11, 12, 13, 14, 15. So I write 15!”

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Alycia’s Progress In Math And Abacus

This is Alycia’s Abacus work from pre-school. She did them all on her own in school but had several mistakes. Her teacher asked her to do the corrections at home. When I saw the book, I was a tad lost on how to teach her coz I was never taught how to use the abacus in school. But after studying the book and the abacus, I figured out how to solve them using the abacus. I tell ya, it’s kinda fun learning new things from my daughter’s pre-school. I’ve picked up Mandarin and abacus since last year. I am sure I’m going to learn more when Alycia goes to a Chinese primary school next year.

Alycia has shown vast improvement in her Math and Abacus since early this year. Lately, she has even been telling me that she loves Math, something that she didn’t quite like in the past! I never liked Math when I was young. It was the subject that I hated most.

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Math For 5-Year Olds… Too Difficult?

Honestly, do you think that these equations are a tad too advanced for 5-year old pre-schoolers?

When I explained to her how to go about solving the equations, I really doubted that she remembered everything, i.e. what she has to do when the empty box is in front, when the empty box is behind, when it’s plus and when it’s minus.

If my memory didn’t fail me, I think I was only taught these when I was in standard 2 or 3. I really don’t remember doing all these when I was a 5-yo pre-schooler. I only remembered I knew how to count from 1-100 when I was 5-yo and I remember playing and singing a lot in kindy…. definitely not doing Math equations.

I have to say that Alycia has improved and caught up with her peers by the leaps and bounds since early this year. She can now do her Math homework by herself (she always insists that she wants to do it by herself) though most times I still sit next to her to ensure that she did it correctly.
Alycia did this exercise on her own and she got almost all correct, with a couple of careless mistakes.

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Teaching Alycia Mathematics

Alycia is still having difficulty doing equations in her Math. She has not much problems doing single digit equations but when it comes to double digits, she’s quite lost. Last year, koo mah sent a pack of Math flash cards for Alycia from HK. I had kept it as I thought it was still a tad early to teach her. I recently found the stack of flashcards when I was unpacking my stuff during the move. I now try to teach her equations (still on addition) as often as I can.

I hope there will be an improvement in Alycia’s Math next year, otherwise I will send her for Kumon Math class.

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