As parents, we constantly hear from teachers and the media how important it is to read to our children; yet, when it comes to math, we are told very little. The challenge for us parents, then, is to find ways to naturally extend math learning at home. We need to make math real for our kids so they recognize its relevance and value. Beth Finkelstein, a kindergarten teacher both in Pelham, New York, and Joyce Lowry Weiskopf, a math consultant in Fairfax, Virginia, share these activities you can use to help your child see that math is real and very much part of daily life:

1. Count trees, cars, lights, and more.
   Next time you're in the car, have your child count how many trees you pass, how many red cars she sees, or how many traffic lights you come to. Counting backwards is also an important skill in preparing children for subtraction. As you go downstairs, have your child count backwards starting at 10.
2. Sort & classify laundry.
   Invite your child to help you out with the laundry. Have him sort clothing by different classification systems, such as by color, size, or wearer. Matching socks and discovering that you end up with half the number you started with helps your child understand the basic math concept of pairs.
3. Make patterns with table settings.
   Setting the table is the perfect opportunity to teach patterns. Set two place settings, and invite your child to finish setting the rest of the table, following the pattern you began.
4. Figure out the change.
   Next time your child begs for that candy at the grocery store checkout, tell her she can have it — if she can figure out which coins are needed to pay for it. If you do not have exact change, encourage her to figure out how much change she should be getting back.
5. Divide a pizza.
   On pizza night, invite your child to figure out how to equally divide the pizza pie so that each member of the family has an equal amount. If there are leftover slices, help your child as he figures out how to divide into half, thirds, quarters, etc. so that everyone gets the same amount.
6. Measure ingredients
   Cooking offers a perfect opportunity for your child to practice measuring and using measurement words. As you cook, ask your child to measure out the necessary ingredients, such as one cup of water, half a teaspoon of salt, and a quarter cup of oil.

You don't have to be a math expert to support your child's exploration and learning of math concepts. By simply introducing and reinforcing math in informal ways, as described above, you are developing her mathematical awareness and helping her to recognize the relevant and important role math plays in our everyday lives.