Thinking And Learning About Mathematics In The Early Years

How can early years practitioners help young children to become not only numerate but aspiring mathematicians who love numbers, shapes and mathematical comparisons? The introduction of the Foundation Stage has led to practitioners seeking ways to teach maths which are more in line with the creative and playful ways young children learn other subjects. Linda Pound draws on current thinking about children's mathematical development to show how you can encourage and enhance the numeracy skills of any child in the early years by linking maths to every-day life situations and making it a playful and enjoyable cross-curricular activity. This highly practical and engaging text includes chapters on: why maths is often seen as 'hard' and what practitioners can do to help young children be more successful exploring shapes, space, measures and patterns how to make maths more fun and playful, using games, humour, stories and rhymes using music and dance to enhance mathematical understanding encouraging children to see the connection between maths and everyday experiences through, for example sorting, matching and guessing creating an environment for mathematical development, indoors and out Concluding with a chapter on how practitioners and parents can become more confident in their use of maths, this user-friendly text, packed full of ideas, is essential reading for practitioners in any early years setting. Students on Early Education courses will also find much here to inspire them.

This important book provides practical guidance for parents, teachers and other early years practitioners who are concerned with young children's musical development. The authors highlight the relationship between music and the development of communication, the expression of emotion and playfulness. They show how these three elements, in conjunction with musical activity and experience, underpin all future learning including the development of language. They go on to explore music as a subject in its own right and its role in supporting other areas of the curriculum. Insights from a wide range of research are presented in a way which makes them accessible to practitioners so that they can be used to inform and develop effective practice. Practitioners and parents are encouraged to have confidence in their own musical ability. The book provides a wide range of practical strategies and activities. It will show that everyone is capable of enjoying making music with young children and contributing to their future musical development.

Review of the first edition “All the major areas of early childhood maths teaching and learning are covered in this powerful book… The book is also full of delightful stories… [It] would be eminently suitable for beginning and trainee teachers but would also be helpful to all those concerned in early years settings. All the relevant information is here, based on a wealth of knowledge and experience.” TES Supporting Mathematical Development in the Early Years provides practical guidance for parents, teachers and other early years workers who want to give children a good start in mathematical development. Showing how competent children are as mathematicians from an early age, the book offers an overview of young children’s mathematical behaviour at home and in early years settings. The book defines the content and the learning curriculum required to promote mathematical thinking, including an examination of the relationship between mathematics and language learning, and the role of other cross-curricular aspects such as information and communications technology (ICT). It explores the role of staff in observing, planning for and supporting children’s learning by using a variety of strategies, and makes suggestions for promoting effective partnerships between the parents or principal carers and early years staff. The book also considers the importance of play and imagination to the development of abstract thought. The second edition is comprehensively updated throughout and includes new material on Special Educational Needs, the very early years, the role of play, the role of ICT, and examples of outdoor play. It is essential reading for early years teachers and students, as well as parents who want to understand and develop their children’s early mathematical learning.

Tap into the Power of Child-Led Math Teaching and Learning Everything a child does has mathematical value--these words are at the heart of this completely revised and updated third edition of The Young Child and Mathematics. Grounded in current research, this classic book focuses on how teachers working with children ages 3 to 6 can find and build on the math inherent in children's ideas in ways that are playful and intentional. This resource - Illustrates through detailed vignettes how math concepts can be explored in planned learning experiences as well as informal spaces - Highlights in-the-moment instructional decision-making and child-teacher interactions that meaningfully and dynamically support children in making math connections - Provides an overview of what children know about counting and operations, spatial relations, measurement and data, and patterns and algebra - Offers examples of informal documentation and assessment approaches that are embedded within classroom practice Deepen your understanding of how math is an integral part of your classroom all day, every day. Includes online video!

Engaging Young Children in Mathematics: Standards for Early Childhood Mathematics Education brings together the combined wisdom of a diverse group of experts involved with early childhood mathematics. The book originates from the landmark 2000 Conference on Standards for Pre-kindergarten and Kindergarten Mathematics Education, attended by representatives from almost every state developing standards for young children's mathematics; federal government officials; mathematicians; mathematics educators; researchers from mathematics education, early childhood education, and psychology; curriculum developers; teachers; policymakers; and professionals from organizations such as the National Conference of Teachers of Mathematics and the National Association for the Education of Young Children. The main goal of the Conference was to work collectively to help those responsible for framing and implementing early childhood mathematics standards. Although it has its roots in the Conference, the expanded scope of the standards and recommendations covered in this book includes the full range of kindergarten to grade 2. The volume is organized into two main parts and an online appendix (http://www.gse.buffalo.edu/org/conference/). Part One, Major Themes and Recommendations, offers a framework for thinking about pre-kindergarten - grade 2 mathematics education and specific recommendations. Part Two, Elaboration of Major Themes and Recommendations, provides substantive detail regarding young students' understandings of mathematical ideas. Each Part includes five parallel subsections: "Standards in Early Childhood Education"; "Math Standards and Guidelines"; "Curriculum, Learning, Teaching, and Assessment"; "Professional Development"; and "Toward the Future: Implementation and Policy." As a whole the book: * presents comprehensive summaries of research that provide specific guidelines for standards, curriculum, and teaching; * takes the recent reports and recommendations for early childhood mathematics education to the next level; * integrates practical details and research throughout; and * provides a succinct, but thorough review of research on the topics, sequences, and learning trajectories that children can and should learn at each of their first years of life, with specific developmental guidelines that suggest appropriate content for each topic for each year from 2-year-olds to 7-year-olds. This is an indispensable volume for mathematics educators, researchers, curriculum developers, teachers and policymakers, including those who create standards, scope and sequences, and curricula for young children and professional teacher development materials, and students in mathematics education, early childhood trainers, teacher educators, and faculty in mathematics education.

This important new book synthesizes relevant research on the learning of mathematics from birth into the primary grades from the full range of these complementary perspectives. At the core of early math experts Julie Sarama and Douglas Clements's theoretical and empirical frameworks are learning trajectories—detailed descriptions of children’s thinking as they learn to achieve specific goals in a mathematical domain, alongside a related set of instructional tasks designed to engender those mental processes and move children through a developmental progression of levels of thinking. Rooted in basic issues of thinking, learning, and teaching, this groundbreaking body of research illuminates foundational topics on the learning of mathematics with practical and theoretical implications for all ages. Those implications are especially important in addressing equity concerns, as understanding the level of thinking of the class and the individuals within it, is key in serving the needs of all children.

This important new book synthesizes relevant research on the learning of mathematics from birth into the primary grades from the full range of these complementary perspectives. At the core of early math experts Julie Sarama and Douglas Clements's theoretical and empirical frameworks are learning trajectories—detailed descriptions of children’s thinking as they learn to achieve specific goals in a mathematical domain, alongside a related set of instructional tasks designed to engender those mental processes and move children through a developmental progression of levels of thinking. Rooted in basic issues of thinking, learning, and teaching, this groundbreaking body of research illuminates foundational topics on the learning of mathematics with practical and theoretical implications for all ages. Those implications are especially important in addressing equity concerns, as understanding the level of thinking of the class and the individuals within it, is key in serving the needs of all children.

This third edition of the best-selling Mathematics in Nursery Education provides an accessible introduction to the teaching of mathematics in the early years. Covering all areas of mathematics learning – number and counting, calculation, pattern, shape, measures and data handling – it summarises the research findings and underlying key concepts and explains how adults can help children to learn through practical experiences, discussion and more direct intervention. This new edition has been fully updated to incorporate the latest research and thinking in this area and includes: why mathematics is important as a way of making sense of the world how attitudes to mathematics can influence teaching and learning how children learn mathematics new material on sorting, matching and handling data ideas for observation and questioning to assess children’s understanding examples of planned activities suggestions for language development assessment criteria. This textbook is ideal for those training to be teachers through an undergraduate or PGCE route, those training for Early Years Professional Status and those studying early childhood on foundation or honours degrees as well as parents looking to explore how their young children learn mathematics. This will be an essential text for any Early Years practitioner looking to make mathematics interesting, exciting and engaging in their classroom.