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The kindergarten years are the perfect time to put your little one on the path to enjoying math for life. Let’s look at why early math is important, some of the best options for curriculum, and how to have fun along the way.

How Sorting Socks at age 5 Could Get Your Child into Harvard.
(Why Math Is Important in Early Childhood Education)

According to research published in ScienceDirect, a long-term study conducted with children starting at age 5 suggests that cultivating executive functioning at an early age helps the brain develop greater capacity in areas of the brain responsible for planning, organizing, memory, goal setting, and self-control, among other beneficial characteristics. Using a sequential, incremental, individualized, mastery-based math curriculum like All About Math, along with hands-on activities (like sorting and matching socks!) helps build executive functioning skills. Those are the very skills needed to excel at higher-level academics.

Providing your kindergartener with a fun, multisensory math program isn’t just about numbers; it’s about setting the foundation for their future.

What Should a Kindergarten Math Curriculum Include?

An effective kindergarten math curriculum doesn’t need to be a lot of work. It can be fun, brief, 20-minute lessons that help them explore how numbers and patterns work.

Here are the core concepts of math that kindergarteners learn:

• Basic Principles of Counting
• One to One principle (one item = one number, don’t count the same object twice)
• Cardinal principle (the last number said tells how many)
• Find one more and one less
• Skip count by 2
• Read and write numbers up to 10
• Understanding position words (above, below, next to)
• Beginning addition and subtraction through play

Check out this great article on counting principles for a more in-depth explanation, plus ideas for building counting skills:
Counting: There’s More to It

Best Kindergarten Math Curricula for Kindergarten

When selecting a kindergarten math curriculum, look for one that prioritizes a multisensory approach, as well as explicit instruction, to ensure there are no gaps or assumptions that a concept is understood.

All About Learning: All About Math

Like our All About Reading and All About Spelling programs, All About Math is based on many of the same proven principles of the Orton-Gillingham approach.

All About Math includes:

• Clear, incremental lessons presented in a logical, well-planned sequence
• Multisensory activities
• Incremental step-by-step lessons that build on previous learning with no gaps
• Level 1 covers kindergarten math and introduces some first-grade concepts
• Built-in review and mastery-based learning
• Individualized lessons, easily adaptable to each child’s pace and readiness
• Easy-to-use teaching guides

Tip: Don’t hesitate—explore All About Math Level 1 and get a free sample of the teacher’s manual and student activity book.

Hands-on Learning in Kindergarten Math

Young kids learn math best when they can touch, build, move, and explore. Lay the foundation for formal learning later by matching numbers on playing cards, grouping socks by color, or counting the number of forks to put on the dinner table. It is this multisensory approach that proves so effective in building the physical brain structures that facilitate better academics in later years.

Manipulatives to use

• All About Math Manipulatives Kit. Specifically designed to work with the program. Buy it once for the whole household, and it works for all levels of All About Math.
• Socks – match colors, count how many pairs (skip counting by twos!)
• Dominoes
• Playdough for shaping numbers
• Measuring cups and kitchen scales

Movement ideas

• Hopscotch numbers
• Number scavenger hunts
• Clap-and-count songs
• Throw tennis balls into a pail and count how many get in

Program links for convenience:
All About Math Level 1 • Manipulatives Kit

Games

• Chutes and Ladders
• Count Your Chickens
• Uno
• Go Fish

DIY Options for Kindergarten Math

• Use muffin tins and manipulatives for sorting.
• Draw a number line with sidewalk chalk and have your child skip count by twos by skipping every other number. Challenge them to skip count by increasingly higher numbers if they can jump that far.
• Make your own number cards with index cards and stickers.
• Use a deck of cards for number games (remove face cards).

Kindergarten Curriculum Tips for Success

• Start slow – kindergarteners don’t need to “keep up.” Follow your child’s interest and attention span.
• Keep lessons short and sweet – 10 to 20 minutes is plenty for a focused math activity. It’s okay if you need to continue an activity over several days.
• Keep it fun – young children love the All About Math animal characters and colorful materials.
• Mix in movement and breaks – math lessons done outside still count! Do a short lesson, then incorporate a fun math-related game, such as hopscotch or counting the steps up the ladder to a slide.
• Celebrate wins – build confidence through praise. At this age, there are no expectations about where your child “should” be in math skills. Celebrate where they are and don’t worry about what they aren’t doing.

FAQs About Kindergarten Math

Reference

1. Longitudinal executive function study (ScienceDirect)