From following recipes to paying bills, numbers and math are woven into everyday life—even if yinou aren’t a “math person” 🙃 But how do young children begin learning numbers and basic math functions that are all around them? Here’s what to expect along with some helpful tips for teaching your child the basics, from how to count to the concept of quantity.

In this article:

• When do children learn numbers?
• How do children learn numbers?
• Why is it important for children to learn numbers?
• How to teach your child numbers—tips and activities

When do children learn numbers? 

Children learn about numbers at different ages, but around age 2, your child may start using number words, like “one, two, three.”  Initially, their understanding of numbers is based on memory and repetition, similar to learning words like “dog” and “ball.”

Your toddler may soon “count to 10” by reciting learned number words. But comprehending the correspondence between a number and a specific quantity takes longer to develop. Research indicates it may take one to two years after the memorization phase for your child to fully grasp the connection between numbers and quantity.

How do children learn numbers?

Grasping the abstract concept of numbers is challenging for toddlers. Realizing that three taps on a Pentatonic Pat Bell is equal to three ducks in a pond is a significant cognitive leap. To understand number concepts like quantity, one-to-one correspondence, and cardinality, your child needs exposure to number words across various contexts. Here’s an overview of the learning stages:

• Quantity recognition—At around 6 months, children may start to recognize that certain quantities are more or less than others.
• Rote counting—Around age 2, toddlers often begin to recite number words from memory.
• One-to-one correspondence—At about age 3, many children connect number words to specific quantities.
• Cardinality—Between ages 2 and 4, toddlers start to grasp the concept of quantity and understand that the last number counted represents the total amount.

Quantity recognition: around 6 months

Quantity recognition is often the first mathematical skill children learn. Well before counting, babies as young as 6 months can demonstrate a basic understanding of quantities just by observing objects. Research suggests that babies can distinguish between different quantities, especially when the difference is significant—for example, six apples versus 12 apples.

By 10 to 12 months, babies may apply this skill when making choices. For instance, given the option between a bowl of two puffs and another with five puffs, your baby might consistently choose the bowl that contains more.

At around age 2, your child may start to visually identify small groups using their understanding of quantity. They might say “two balls” or “one apple.” Although it may seem like it, they are likely not actually counting yet. Instead, they’ve learned to associate the word “two” with a group of two objects, demonstrating a grasp of quantity and early language skills.

Rote counting: around age 2

Also at about 2 years old, children often begin memorizing numbers from one to 10 in sequence and attempting to recite them from memory. This is similar to how children this age can sing the alphabet but don’t yet grasp the relationship between a letter they sing and the sound it represents. When they recite numbers in order, your 2-year-old doesn’t yet understand the connection between the number they say and the quantity it symbolizes. But, they may enjoy practicing the sequence again and again, just like singing the alphabet song ❤️ This is an important foundational skill.

One-to-one correspondence: around age 3

The idea that one number corresponds to one object is known as one-to-one correspondance. Children need to grasp this before they can count or understand a quantity larger than three. While they can immediately recognize—or “subitize”—one, two, or three objects, they have to count to determine larger amounts, identifying each item once and assigning a unique number to it in sequence.

By 36 months, your child may be able to do this for up to five individual objects. Keep in mind that the age children learn one-to-one correspondence and counting varies, so don’t be concerned if your 3-year-old is still working toward these skills.

Cardinality: 2 to 4 years

Cardinality is the concept that the number assigned to the last object in a group while counting signifies the total quantity of items. During your child’s early development, if you give them six pegs from the Match and Tap Hammer Box to count, after they reach the sixth peg, they might keep counting, “seven, eight, nine…”🙃 This shows that they don’t fully understand cardinality yet.

Your child truly comprehends a number’s meaning when they can accurately respond to questions that involve specific amounts. If you ask them, “Can you hand me three crayons?” and they do so, they’ve successfully attached the word “three” to its quantity. Children learn to associate a numeral with its number word before they link the numeral to the quantity it represents.

Why is it important for children to learn numbers?

Your child will soon use numbers in school, and research suggests that learning about numbers early in life helps lay a strong foundation for future education. Your child’s number knowledge at the start of kindergarten is one of the best predictors of later academic success—an even better indicator than reading skills or attention span.

Number words, one-to-one correspondence, counting, and cardinality are the tools your child will need to work on math skills like addition, subtraction, and multiplication.

How to teach your child numbers—tips and activities

Learning numbers takes frequent exposure and practice. Try saying number words, counting, and identifying quantities during your child’s daily routine. For example, you can make observations like, “Yum, you have three strawberries on your plate: One, two, three!” 

Here are a few stage-based tips and activities for helping your child learn numbers:

Number and counting activities for babies

Count objects in their environment: 9 to 10 months

Your baby constantly absorbs information, including basic number concepts, from their surroundings and experiences, You can practice counting apples in your grocery cart, objects in books, bites of food, and even your baby’s fingers and toes ❤️

Count your fingers to show quantity: 10 to 11 months

To teach your baby the word “apple,” you might point to one and say, “apple,” making a clear link between the object and the word. But when you point to three apples and say “three,” the word’s meaning is more abstract. The term “three” could refer to any of the apples’ many attributes, including their color, size, texture, weight, or taste.

To help your child connect number words to larger quantities, use your fingers as a visual aid. For instance, hold up three fingers when counting three cups, demonstrating the quantity “three.” Giving your child two different examples of the number word at once allows them to see what the two different groups of objects—the cups and your fingers—have in common.

Connect number words to playthings: 11 to 12 months

As your baby approaches their first birthday, you can continue to build their understanding of numbers and quantity by counting small groups of objects. For example, place the pegs from the Wooden Peg Drop into a paper lunch bag, then shake the bag to encourage your child to find them. Ask questions like, “What’s inside? Can you find them?” As your child pulls out the pegs one by one, you can emphasize the number words and teach your baby about sequencing: “There’s one, and there’s two. You found two! Where’s the last one?”

Numbers and counting activities for toddlers and preschoolers

Emphasize number words while counting together: 16 to 18 months

Long before your child says their first words, they’re picking up on the rhythm, tone, intensity, and intonation of your speech. These acoustic qualities of speech, known as prosody, help communicate the meaning of words and are important for your child’s language development. 

As you and your toddler count the bugs from the Fuzzy Bug Shrub together, bring your child’s attention to the number words by drawing them out: “Onnnnne, twooooo, threeeee!”  

Count what you see: 19 to 24+ months

Counting objects in everyday life will help your child understand that number words go along with quantities. You can say, “I’m giving you five little crackers—one, two, three, four, five.” Look for other things to count:

• Buttons on a shirt
• Petals on a flower
• Legs on a pet
• Books on a shelf
• Toothbrushes in the bathroom

Try putting your hand on your child’s and guiding them to touch each object as you count it. Encourage them to say “one” when touching the first object, “two” with the second, and so on. 

If your toddler is pretending to hop like a bunny, count each time their feet leave the floor: “One hop, two hops, three hops!” At this age, they may imitate you by saying the number words all together, like “onetwotreefo.” Counting each bunny hop separately helps your child understand that each number word corresponds to a specific quantity.

Count to lead up to a fun moment: 19 to 24 months

Use counting as a way to mark time until something happens. You can say something like, “Let’s count to five, and then we’ll stomp our rainboots in the puddle.” Then, in an excited tone, count on your fingers, “One, two, three, four, five!” Your toddler will pay close attention to the number words as they eagerly wait for “five.”

Use books to practice numbers: 19 to 24 months

Any book with illustrations or photos presents opportunities for practicing numbers and counting. Ask a question before you start. How many balloons do you see on this page? Then answer the question while counting, “One, two, three. I see three balloons.”

You can count just about anything, pointing as you go. For example, in “Animals I See,” you could count the number of ants. Then, hold up your hands and count the same number on your fingers to reinforce the idea that each number word corresponds to a quantity. To incorporate the concept of cardinality, count the ants in the book and circle the group of them with your finger: “One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine.” [Circle the set.] “Nine ants.”

Introduce higher numbers: 24 to 36 months

While it may seem like numbers greater than 10 are too advanced for young children, research suggests that exposing your 2- to 3-year-old to numbers in the 20s, 30s, and beyond can be helpful. When you introduce these to your child, they’ll notice the repetition of the one- to-nine pattern: 21 through 29, then 31 through 39, and so on. Sometimes children find it easier to learn number words that contain the words for “one” through “nine” than number words like “eleven,” “twelve,” and “thirteen,” in which “one” through “nine” appear but are not expressed with the same words.

For this reason, researchers suggest that there’s no need to wait until your child can count to 10 before moving on to counting bigger numbers. And, if your child says “five-teen” instead of “fifteen,” it’s actually a positive sign that they grasp the logic that applies to most number words.

Get your child moving with stairway math: 25 to 36 months

Combining physical activity with a little math learning is a fun way to reinforce your child’s number sense. They can practice counting and identifying numbers while they get their wiggles out. If you don’t have stairs, you can approximate this activity by doing it on the floor. Here’s what to do:

• Write each number from one through 10 on a piece of paper. You can add dots or other symbols to represent the quantities. Lean the papers against the risers—the vertical frontpieces of the steps—on a staircase in numerical order, starting with “1”  on the bottom stair. 
• Give your 2- to 3-year-old a handful of bean bags. Balled-up socks or wadded-up papers work well, too.
• Invite your child to gently toss a bag onto the stairs and call out the number of the stair it lands on. Ask them to walk slowly up to get the bag, counting each stair as they go. This helps confirm the number the bag landed on and is great one-to-one correspondence practice.
• To offer some variety, you can rearrange the numbers in descending order or randomly.
• Once your child has learned what each number looks like, you can challenge them to place the number of blocks or other small playthings on each step that corresponds with the numbered paper.

Play hide-and-seek: 24 to 36 months 

Playing hide-and-seek makes learning to count fun. Show your toddler or preschooler how to count to 10—or higher—before coming to find you. Keep in mind that this type of “counting” more closely resembles learning a song than counting to determine quantity. But, it’s a good way to practice saying numbers aloud.

Create “speed bumps” to count: 24 to 36 months

Make a few speed bumps in the road for the Wooden Camper to drive over. These could be the Jump-in Eco Hoops or just rolled-up napkins. Count the speed bumps as the camper goes over them so your child feels physical feedback with each number.

“Teach” a plaything how to count: 24 to 36 months

Once your child can count to 4 or 5, help them “teach” a plaything, like the Soft Cotton Baby Doll, how to count. As you use your voice to pretend the doll is counting something, like the Felt Flowers, make a deliberate and noticeable mistake. Repeat a number: “One, two, two, three, four.” Or, count numbers in a mixed-up order: “One, eight, 42, 3,000.” Ask your child if the doll counted right. If they didn’t notice the doll’s mistake, explain it.

RELATED: Two-year-old-friendly math activities in everyday life

Make numbers tangible: 34+ months

As your child approaches age 3, they may begin to recognize some numerals. Showing a numeral next to a tangible representation of it may help your child understand what numerals like 1, 2, and 3 symbolize. You can try this with the Wooden Counting Box.

• Start with the “1” card, and ask your child how many pegs fit into it.
• When you change to the next card, count the pegs that fit into it with your child.
• Invite them to trace the numeral on the card with their finger and say it.
• When the two of you are finished counting, your child will probably enjoy pulling the knob on the side  to let the pegs drop into the box.

As your child becomes familiar with higher numbers, you can demonstrate quantities in other ways. A simple number line shows how numbers get larger in one direction and smaller in the other. The Montessori Math Bars & Number Tiles provide a clear comparison of numbers and the quantities they stand for. Your child can match the color-coded Number Tile to its corresponding Math Bar to see how the bars get longer as the number sequence continues. 

Developmental concerns with learning numbers

The age range during which children learn numbers is wide. Those who are consistently exposed to the idea of quantity may pick up number words and develop a deeper understanding of their meaning sooner. Typically by around age 5, children understand how to count to 10 with an understanding of one-to-one correspondence. If you have concerns about your child’s ability to learn numbers or related concepts, reach out to your family’s pediatrician, who can assess your child’s development and determine whether further evaluation is needed.

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