---
title: Six Secrets to Get Kids Excited About Math
description: Get kids excited about using math using these slick parenting secrets!
---

[Child Development Activities and Tips Blog ](https://www.kids-konnect.com/blog)

# [Six Secrets to Get Kids Excited About Math](https://www.kids-konnect.com/blog/get-kids-excited-about-math)

 Written by [Makinya Ward](https://www.kids-konnect.com/blog/author/makinya-ward) | Mar 3, 2016 5:30:00 PM

Get your kids excited about mathematics using some sly parenting strategies! Here are some tips:

### Patterns

The [California Department of Education](http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/re/documents/preschoollf.pdf) standards for preschool mathematics include pattern recognition. Point out patterns you observe and encourage your child to point out patterns, too. Who can find more? Easy patterns for little children:

- alternating colors
- snack foods—pretzel, grape; two pretzels, two grapes; three pretzels, three grapes...

### Kid for Hire

“Hire” your child to show you how to solve a math problem, [says Suzanne Sutton](https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/how-to-get-reluctant-children-to-embrace-math/2014/03/04/4be99e46-959d-11e3-8461-8a24c7bf0653_story.html), creator of a website to encourage a love of learning. If your child is studying odd and even numbers, for example, good parenting can mean paying her to explain them to you using blocks or pebbles.

### Good at Math

Never say you were not good at math when you were in school, [say the experts at GreatKids](http://www.greatschools.org/gk/articles/get-excited-about-math/). Communicate a love of math to your child in your words and actions.

## Mind Reader

Prompt your child to think of a number between one and 10, then ask Yes/No questions, [says the U.S. Department of Education](http://www2.ed.gov/parents/academic/help/math/part_pg8.html#p8):

- Is it more than five?
- No!
- Is it less than three?
- No!
- Is it even?
- Yes!
- Is it four?!
- Yes!

Switch roles and have fun!

## Snap It

Stanford University mathematics professor [Jo Boaler suggests](https://www.youcubed.org/fluency-without-fear/) playing "*Snap-It"* with your child. Using connecting cubes, you and your child assemble two equal-number “trains.” When your child says “Snap,” break your trains and each hide one section behind your back. The other person has to say how many cubes are hidden.

## Measure Up

At Kids Konnect we encourage children to learn about capacity by manipulating many different containers. Can a tall, narrow container hold the same amount of dry beans as a squat, wide container? Use measurement-related words in everyday actions, too:

- Our beagle has a mass of nine kilograms, but the Smiths’ Great Dane has a mass of 60 kilograms.
- I think we walked a mile going to the playground today!

*At Kids Konnect, we’d like to know: What do you do to get your kids excited about mathematics? Please offer your suggestions in the space below. *

[View full post](https://www.kids-konnect.com/blog/get-kids-excited-about-math)

```json
{
  "@context" : "http://schema.org",
  "@type" : "BlogPosting",
  "author" : {
    "@type" : "Person",
    "name" : "Makinya Ward"
  },
  "dateModified" : "2016-03-03T17:30:19.002Z",
  "datePublished" : "2016-03-03T17:30:00Z",
  "headline" : "Six Secrets to Get Kids Excited About Math",
  "image" : {
    "@type" : "ImageObject",
    "height" : 334,
    "url" : "http://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/386956/shutterstock_347315867.jpg",
    "width" : 500
  },
  "mainEntityOfPage" : "https://www.kids-konnect.com/blog/get-kids-excited-about-math",
  "publisher" : {
    "@type" : "Organization",
    "logo" : {
      "@type" : "ImageObject",
      "height" : 60.0,
      "url" : "http://www.kids-konnect.com/hubfs/kids_konnect_long_logo.png",
      "width" : 260.0
    },
    "name" : "Child Development Blog"
  }
}
```