Learning and Teaching 

How to build your child’s numeracy skills

Birth to Year 2

Developing numeracy skills early gives children a foundation for their learning and development. It prepares them for daily life, including general problem solving and handling money.

Maths includes noticing numbers, shapes, patterns, size, time and measurement. Incorporating maths into everyday experiences is easy and fun. Maths is everywhere – in the playground, at the shops and at home.

Children need lots of experiences in making, counting, drawing and talking about numbers. 

You may feel the maths your child is learning in their early years is different from how you learnt. But you can still support your child in many ways. Make connections by explaining how numbers and counting are a part of everyday life.

For more information and activities visit:

How to build your child's numeracy skills from birth to year 2 

Year 3 to Year 6

Support your child's learning by giving them opportunities to discuss and engage in maths. Your child will begin to connect the importance of maths with everyday activities. Including navigating public transport, choosing the best item to buy, budgeting, and cooking.

Talk positively about maths so your child also values it. If your experiences in maths at school were less than ideal, avoid making comments like “I was bad at maths at school”. Comments like these can lower your child’s expectations of themselves. They can also perpetuate myths about people being good or bad at maths.

If you did well at maths in school, avoid jumping in with answers or solutions. Encourage your child to talk about how they might work out maths problems. This helps boost their confidence and deepens their understanding.

Maths today is not about learning by repetition. Today, the focus is on recognising that there are many ways to get an answer. Rather, it is important to be able to explain how and why you chose the approach you did.

There are many activities you can do at home to help explore maths with your child. When participating in these activities, avoid associating them with speed. Expecting your child to work quickly on maths can cause maths anxiety. Try to focus on the process and not the outcome.

For more information and activities visit:

How to build your child's numeracy skills from years 3 to 6

Deborah Courtney

Director of Learning and Teaching