[Product Review] Tupperware Shape-O Toy
A classic toy that has earned its longevity.
[Product Review] Tupperware Shape-O Toy
4 years old and under
It’s never too early to talk math with kids. Use number words, play with shapes, make patterns, and pay attention to their astonishing logic.
How young children learn about numbers
How young children learn about numbers
"As in other areas of language development, it appears children infer the meanings of [multi-digit] numbers using whatever experiences they can access." This is one of several conclusions a group of researchers at Michigan State University and Indiana University...
Short notes
Short notes
I passed a lovely morning with some math teacher friends at the Museum of Math in New York City today. Sadly, I did not have Griffin or Tabitha along. We would have had a ball. I have three observations... One. There is lots for kids to do there. It is truly a...
Talking math with your daughters
Talking math with your daughters
The conversations we have with our children affect their thinking. Of course they have their own interests, but the conversations we initiate have an impact. The New York Times' Motherlode blog (subtitle, Adventures in Parenting—we'll talk about the equating...
If it’s true for other language…
If it’s true for other language…
...it's probably true for number language too. University of Pennsylvania researchers have studied the quality of parents' speech to their toddlers, and its relationship to the children's vocabulary later on. "Quality" of speech was measured by how well an adult...
Learning to count
Learning to count
I am fascinated by watching children learn to count. There are many surprising twists and turns kids take along the way. Even more surprising, perhaps, is that what seem like crazy mistakes to us adults are completely sensible attempts at getting it right for kids....
A circular conversation
A circular conversation
The following conversation took place about two years ago. It is probably the first one that made me realize how important it is to talk math with my kids. Near the beginning of the conversation I noticed myself making a choice between engaging her mind and moving...
Uncle Wiggily
Uncle Wiggily
Tabitha was $latex 3\frac{1}{2}$ years old when we were playing a game of Uncle Wiggily. In case you are not familiar with the game, I’ll briefly describe it. Uncle Wiggily is a board game with 100 spaces along a twisty path. Players draw cards; each card has...