Parents, educators, and even the government have ideas about what defines “Kindergarten readiness.” Here at Wayne County Regional Education Service Agency (Wayne RESA), we recognize a whole child approach to “Kindergarten readiness” that considers the brain and body connections necessary in the early years of life. Focusing on just one area (like reading because it’s my favorite) and not others (like math, because I struggled in math) is easy both in the classroom and at home.
As a Mom, I struggle to consider math in my day to day interactions, but always make time for reading and writing in a variety of playful ways. In an attempt to know better and do better, I did a little math research of my own to find the latest information from HighScope’s team of researchers as well as a team at Michigan Department of Education who recently published a set of Essential Practices in Early Mathematics. I was so excited to find that a lot of essentials are already part of my day, like counting how many more days until a fun event or how many minutes it should take to brush teeth.
One new vocabulary term I found several times throughout my investigation was “subitizing.” At first, I had no idea what this meant and then I realized it was a simple as playing a game of “Trouble” with my three year old! “Subitizing” is formed from the Latin word “subitus” meaning sudden or rapid. Envision asking a two-year-old how old they are as they shyly hold up two fingers. That is subitizing! Here are some fast facts you’ll need to know about subitizing:
• Subitizing is the ability to “see” a small amount and know “how many” there are instantly without counting
• It is difficult to subitize more than five objects
• Fundamental to understanding “cardinality”
For some ideas to support “subitizing” try any or all of these active learning games:
• Match that Number – Call out a number and ask children to match with fingers while lining up or waiting in line at the store
• Name that Number Dance and Freeze– While dancing to your family favorite, stop the music and show dot cards, fingers or dice quickly then hide them and ask the child to name the quantity without counting. Let them take the lead and hold the cards for you to name. It’s harder than you think!
“Subitizing” is just one early math skill that we may already be doing with the children in our lives and with just this little bit of info can do all the more!
Keep an eye out for more information about other math concepts and ideas for bringing them to every child, every day! Share your ideas and comments with us on Facebook!
Guest Blogger: Carissa Orr, Wayne RESA Early Childhood Consultant for the Great Start Readiness Program
Great Start Readiness Program is a Michigan state-funded preschool program for four-year-old children with factors which may place them at risk of educational failure. The program is administered by the Michigan Department of Education, Office of Great Start. Funding is allocated to Wayne RESA to administer the program locally.
These blogs were developed and funded under a grant awarded by the Michigan Department of Education.
Research on preschool programs and specific research on GSRP indicates that children provided with a high-quality preschool experience show significant positive developmental differences when compared to children from the same backgrounds who did not attend a high-quality preschool program.
Photographer:
Early Childhood Professional, “Music with Ms. Carissa,” Mama, and now blogger thanks to MDM! Carissa works as an Early Childhood Consultant for Michigan’s state-funded Preschool Program, the Great Start Readiness Program. In her spare time, she entertains children and families with live music as part of her Music with Ms. Carissa. Most importantly, she is “Jack’s Mom” and loves adventuring with her young toddler all around Metro Detroit!