ABSTRACT
It may seem strange to think of babies as having mathematical awareness, but more research and neuroscience revelations are showing that even babies are curious about mathematical improbabilities and that young children may be more mathematically aware than we have previously realised. Chapter 6 explores mathematics in Early Year’s settings and the double dilemma that many practitioners are not confident with traditional mathematics themselves (even though they may have excellent practical mathematics) and second that mathematics is often considered to be a pre-school or school subject, so can be neglected in the birth to three age range. However, mathematics has a constant influence on both children’s and adult’s lives, from spatial awareness, to throwing a ball to calculating ratios. This chapter considers how practitioners can incorporate mathematics into regular activities and be aware of their own skills in this area as well. Laying out this foundation will help children to be mathematically aware from the very beginning, from language to problem solving.
