Hi,

I have a 6yr old who I am starting on RS. She spent Kinder at private school and through out PS we have focused on Math from the prospect of counting.

When learning to recognize 1-10 on the abacus, with the tallys or with her fingers she defaults to counting. She is new to the concept of recognizing values. Is it okay for her to count 6-9 (ie 5+1,2,3,4) or do I need to focus on her simply knowing that 5 and 1 is 6, 5 and 2 is seven,...?

Is it ever okay for her to count? It seems like at first it would be okay and then after enough repetition she would learn 5+2=6, etc.

I hate having to reprimand her for counting, but if this correction is important I can do it.

Blessings
lisa filsell

Hi, Lisa.

Counting is normal. We all learn numbers by counting. However, you will need to start transitioning your daughter from counting to visual recognition of numbers. It is vital to her later on down the road. Early on, I normally sit with my kids and just use an abacus and quickly show various numbers 6 through 10. After a couple of days of 5 to 10 minute 'practicing', my kids have the numbers down very well without counting.

If you have any questions or concerns, I suggest you contact the help desk or email RS at info@alabacus.com.

Rachel

My son did the same thing and finally, I set aside one whole math lesson time slot dedicated to practicing recognizing the numbers without counting. I tried to mix it up using the cards, tally sticks, abacus, etc. and just spent 15-20 min. reinforcing it. Then the following days of math that week, we reviewed for a few minutes at the start of each lesson so it is fresh in his mind during the lesson.