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Adults use lots of maths at home. You can show your child how you use numbers, shapes, sizes and times. You can use everyday maths words. Your child may not understand all the maths you use, but she can get to know maths words and numbers. She can learn about the numbers on the clock. She can see the numbers counting backwards on the microwave. She can help you choose the TV channel on the remote control. She can hold the tape measure and help you find the number. All this will help her when she goes to school. She will know that numbers are useful at home, and not just for sums.

Getting food ready

Small children can help in simple ways when you are cooking.

Planning ahead

Your child can help you work out what you will need and what you will do first. The pasta takes longer to cook. Let's put that on first. How many fish fingers shall we get out? We'll need a saucepan for the potatoes and a frying pan for the sausages Can you help me get a few things out of the freezer for tonight? How many cupfuls or handfuls of rice do we need? Shall we use a whole packet, half a packet, or a third

Fetching things

Your child can collect numbers of things around the kitchen for you.

• Can you fetch me five potatoes?

• Can you find three more tomatoes?

• I've got three fish fingers here. I need six. How many more do we need to make six?

• Have we got seven carrots yet?

• How many eggs are there in the fridge?
  We need two.

Putting things out

Your child can get things out ready for cooking, and lay the table.

• How many people are there? Can you get out a plate for each person?

• Can you put out five forks and five knives?

• We have three bowls on the table. Can you get out a spoon for each one?

• There are two plates out and we need four. How many more do we need?
  

Cooking and timing

What shall we do first? What do we do next?

You can have some fun discussing the order we do things in, making deliberate mistakes: do we put the beans in the pan or open the tin first? Do I mix the fat and flour and then put my apron on afterwards?

• Do we turn the gas up high or low?

• What number shall we set the oven on?

• How long will it take to cook? What time is it now? What number will the big hand be on when it is ready? If you have a 'pinger' timer you can talk about the number of minutes and count down 'three minutes left', 'two minutes left'.

Making jam sandwiches

Making sandwiches with your child involves using everyday maths words about shapes and numbers.

• How many slices do you need for a sandwich?

• Can you spread the butter and jam to all the four corners?

• Put the other slice on top and press it down.
  

• Can you cut it in half? How many pieces will we have then? What shape will they be? Can we cut it in half another way? Can you make triangles?

• Can you cut it into four quarters? What shape will they be? Squares or triangles?

Reading a recipe

Read the recipe with your child, and point out the numbers or amounts of things that you need. Work out first what you need to buy. Talk about the order you have to do things in.

• The recipe may need 3 eggs and you have two, so you need one more, but will buy a box of six.

• Read the amounts like 1 pint or 1 litre or 11/2 pounds. Do not worry whether you use centimetres or inches, or whether children understand grams or ounces, or halves and quarters. Just hearing these words will help children become familiar with them. They will get an idea of how they are used, why they are used and what different amounts look like.

Planning with the calendar

You may use a calendar to note special occasions and to plan for these. If there is a birthday, you may need to plan when to buy presents. If someone is coming to stay, you may need to buy extra food.

• How many days is it until mum's birthday?

• How many days is it until the holidays?

• How many days is it until the weekend, when we have visitors?

• What date will it be on your birthday?

• What day is it today? What date is it today?

• Where else can we see the day and the date? (on newspapers, till receipts, the TV)
  

Getting ready to go out

You can involve your child in what needs to be done before you go out. What order do you do these in?

• Switch everything off.

• Check the doors and windows are shut.

• Get a shopping bag.

• Get the shopping list.

• Get the bread for the ducks.

• Go to the toilet.

• Put on shoes, coat, gloves.
  

Getting dressed

You can have some fun in teaching your child to dress himself, by asking questions like, 'What do you put on first?' and 'What next?' then making 'silly' suggestions.

• Do you put your jumper on first or your vest?

• Do you put your trousers on first or your shoes? You can use words like, first, second, third with older children.

Packing away and tidying up

If we put the biggest ones in first, they will be easier to fit.

• Which is the biggest?

• Which is the next biggest?

Bathtime

This is the best time for playing at counting fingers and toes. You can invent games with bath toys, plastic pots.

• Singing splashy or
  fish counting rhymes

• Counting how many cups you can pour out of a toy teapot

• Catching and counting flying fish
  (or ducks or shapes or plastic lids)
  

• Playing 'coins in the fountain'

• Playing boats