I like to count with our children using an abacus (a simple Slavonic abacus of 10 rows with 10 beads on each row). The abacus is a great teaching method for basic mathematical skills. Simply count the single numerals and have your child slide the beads across one by one while you say each number in turn or have your child say the number if they are old enough. Our abacus has the first five on each row in one color and the second five a different color, which also really helps the child to visually see as they push the beads that ‘six’ is a combination of five beads plus one bead. I really recommend this specific abacus.
As your child approaches three years, they can also start to learn simple sums illustrated by your sliding beads together. Start with one plus one equals two and practice it with them until they are very sure about it, then progress to sums with the answer ‘three’ – first addition, until they can do it easily, then subtraction from three. Only when you see that things are getting way too easy for your child, progress to the next number while continuing to practice sums for the previous numbers. Don’t get frustrated, it will take a lot of practice with a toddler and progress will be extremely slow!
Older children who are acquainted with simple addition and subtraction sums can progress to a Soroban or Cranmer abacus which will allow them to visually, manually calculate sums of division and multiplication, as well as addition and subtraction of larger numbers. This is far better than working out sums on paper or on a calculator, as it gives them a visual and physical basis to cause them to understand what’s happening in their calculations. You can find information about how to use the Cranmer Abacus here: http://www.faculty.umb.edu/sandy_smith/NHAbacus/index.html .This is a site for the blind. Enter the site and click on one of the links on the side.
The alphabet
I’m not very experienced with teaching the alphabet but I recommend that the first time the child learns the alphabet, they will learn the lower case letters and they will learn only the phonetic expression of the letters. This may help them when they are learning to read and they recognise ‘b’ as ‘ba’ and not ‘the letter bee’. Later, letter names can be taught for the sake of sorting alphabetically, but it probably won’t aid their reading, so maybe best to wait until reading is established.
Geography – World Maps and Continents
Try the Melissa and Doug wooden continents puzzle for teaching the continents. I had a look at Geopuzzles online too (see link below) and they seem a great way of teaching geography to older children, especially if your kids like puzzles. The Melissa and Doug toy company have a good name for quality and good customer service but I think they will only ship within the USA.
Other educational toys I recommend
Here is a spelling board with movable letters for children who are beginning to learn to spell.
Here is a 48 piece floor puzzle map of the solar system by the Melissa and Doug toy company.
Music
I really recommend these Scripture verses put to music by Steve Green. The production is nice and tasteful, never rocky or rappy or anything like that, but rather pleasing to the ear. Scriptures are taken from the NIV Bible.
