12 Fun Activities to Introduce Math for Preschoolers

Did you know that math is the language of nature? We use it every day without even realizing it. Many preschoolers are naturally drawn to math games, like counting apples or drawing shapes.

In this post, we’ll provide you with a few fun activities to introduce your child to the field of mathematics! They’re designed for kids aged 3-5 and require no more than a pen and paper (or even just some fingers). They’ll keep their attention while challenging them in new ways!

1. Fingers and Toes Math

It is by far one of our favorites! It’s what we did when Emily was younger, and she loved it. Ask your child how many fingers she has on each hand. Write down her answer for each hand. Now, repeat the process for her toes. Once you have all of the fingers and toes accounted for, add them together to get a number representing how many fingers-toes your child has. See if she can do the same thing for you!

2. Leaf Counting

It is a great way to introduce young children to the concept of ordinal numbers. Find a fallen leaf and lay it flat on an even surface. Ask your child to place the numbers one, two, three, four, and five along the side of the leaf from smallest to largest (one being the smallest leaf possible and five being a significant part of the plate). Then ask your kid to show you how many leaves are on her leaf by placing fingers in each number as she goes.

3. Adapting a Circle Game

Ask that your child close his or her eyes and point to as many spots on the floor as he or she can. It is just like a circle game, except you have just one place on the ground to choose from! Tell your child to keep his or her eyes closed while you move around the room. When your feet are touching the ground, say “one” and open your eyes. If you miss any of these spots, count them for him or her.

4. Introducing Fractions

Another of our favorites, this activity is perfect for introducing ratios. To get started:

a) Place one small cube in the palm of your hand and ask your child to show you what he or she thinks it is.

b) Open your hand and show them the cube is two cubes (this is a ratio).

c) When they’re ready, switch places and allow them to try it with their own hands.

5. How Many Times?

You’ll need a lot of colorful beads and several different containers (empty plastic bottles or cups will do). Set the boxes out on the floor with a small bowl of dots for each one. Ask your child to show you how many times they can fit the beads into one container. Once they’ve completed one container, ask them to do the same thing with another box. Let them know it’s okay to count out loud while they work!

6. Bird Tracks Math

This one is pretty self-explanatory. If you have birdbaths or bird feeders in your yard, try counting the number of bird tracks you see in a few different places. You can utilize this activity to introduce the concept of “more than” and “less than” if you ask your child to show you how many more tracks there are in one spot than another.

7. Weather I Can?

It is a great game to play if there are rain clouds in the sky. Place a small amount of water in the palm of your hand and ask your child to show you how much he or she thinks it will rain. Then, tell him or her that it is raining but only a tiny amount. Next, ask him or her if it will rain more, less, or as much as before and compare each answer to the one back!

8. Counting to 10

This game helps kids understand how numbers go up in increments of 10 instead of just straight numbers. You’ll need a basket or other container with many different objects (for instance, paperclips, buttons, buttons, and more buttons). Ask your child to show you how many items he or she can fit in the container. Then, count the things one of each as you put them in. When you’re done, ask them to show you how many objects they used at first and how many there are now.

9. Rocks to Apples

This game will help your child understand that length and width are just two different ways of putting together any number of measurements. For this activity, all you need are various small stones or pebbles and a handful of apples. Ask your child to place every apple on the ground at least once, then move around the yard/yardage (or just outside) with more stones and ask him or her how many times they can fit an apple into each stone. If any loose rocks are too small for an apple, help your child add those up as well. 

10. Roll a Ball

This activity is perfect for introducing the concept of multiplication to young children. All you need is a big softball or some other object your child can roll around with ease (such as a beach ball!). You’ll need one ball for each child, plus a place to set them down and a few extra balls just in case. Ask your child to show you how many times he or she can roll the ball around in several different spots before setting it down. When they’re done, talk about how this is an example of multiplication because it’s a lot of times (it multiplied by itself) and a whole lot of objects.

11. Milk Jug Magic

This game helps your kid understand the concept of division (and how it’s different from multiplication). You’ll need several small milk jugs (empty ones will do), a large bucket, and a drinking straw for this activity. Ask your child to fill up the jars with water and place them in the bucket. Then, have them use the straw to remove one of the bucket’s jugs without spilling any water. Do this again and compare the two times to one another. Discuss how much water they took out in both cases.

12. Switching Gears

This game will help your child understand how an object can change its size as it gets bigger or smaller. All you need is a large bucket, several small buckets, and some string or yarn to tie them all together for this activity. Ask your child to fill up the smaller buckets with water and set them aside. Then, ask them to take some string and tie the large bucket into a knot at the top end of the giant bucket. Have them try to pass it through all four smaller buckets without untying it. When they’re done, compare both times and discuss how much water is in the large bucket now that it’s been passed through all four of the small ones (in this case, one-fourth).

These activities are a great way to help your child start learning about basic mathematics skills. They’ll not only help them understand math on paper, but they’ll also help them learn how to work with the concepts in real life.

For more tips on how to teach your children about mathematics, please send us a message now!

Hope this article comes in handy for parents who want to teach math to their children. If you have any other tricks and tips for making math easy, please let us know in the comments below. Your valuable suggestions will help a lot of other parents.