Young children are generally eager to learn more about the world around them — They are naturally competent with the basic concepts of math and science even before they are taught these subjects at school. Still, consider for a moment if math and science education were to be taken a tad early. That would indeed make full use of this window of time where learning is fastest for kids.
Babies and toddlers, for example, can’t help but run into situations where math and science come into play and due to their rapidly growing minds, they absorb information fast. However, they might not necessarily know that what they’re experiencing or partaking of are the products or concepts of math and science.
The super absorbent ages
The generally engaging and encouraging climate in enrichment centers for mathematics and science are structured to cater for children’s early encounters with these subjects. Their confidence in their ability to understand and use math and science are boosted, all at the right time. These positive experiences help children to develop dispositions such as curiosity, imagination, flexibility, inventiveness, and persistence, which contribute to their future success in and out of school.
The qualified educators at these centers work to introduce math and science concepts, methods, and language through a variety of appropriate experiences and clever teaching strategies. They also strive to guide children in seeing connections of ideas within mathematics and science and guide their knowledge throughout their day to day experiences too. These teachers are trained to encourage children to communicate as they use the lessons in more sustained ways.
Recognizing the Limits
Mathematics have concepts at many different levels of abstraction and at times, even the lowest levels of abstraction are beyond the abilities of young children’s understanding. For example, Algebra. This component of math requires the learner to have acquired formal operations that enable them to deal with second symbol systems. Very young children are unlikely to comprehend them just yet.
Getting to know the wonders of math and science
Children that are exposed to mathematics and science in the early years will also learn how to apply it in daily life. In kindergarten, children will have their first experience of dealing with money. When they buy stuff from the book shop or canteen, they have a hands on experience on how buying transactions really work. They will inevitably also start learning how to budget their money and even think prudently before buying anything.
Parent’s guide to choosing science books for their preschoolers
When shopping for science books for your young child, remember that the book or books should:
- Feature current, factual content;
- Have clear and simple explanations;
- Feature beautifully presented illustrations and narrative;
- Allow children to answer questions and/or explore concepts effectively.
Science teaches kids about logic. Why does an object fall to the ground when you let go of it? Why is the sky blue? Why do we need plants on earth? Curiosity naturally runs in children, so fun and exciting lessons will give them more things to ponder about and also occupy them with activities such as appropriate science experiments. This will allow them to become more creative, and curious and help them come to logical conclusions.
This firm grasp of knowledge on science and math in their early days will allow them to be better equipped to absorb more complicated areas of study and go further in their academic life.
