Math Play

A 5-year-old shocked her mother by not being able to solve a simple addition equation using counters, despite being able to complete math worksheets with similar problems. This child attended a private school that pushed her to succeed, perhaps too quickly. You see, children need plenty of hands-on math play to understand the correlation between numbers and their quantities. 


Math Play Mat

This math play mat is an excellent resource to help children connect numbers with their amounts through hands-on experiences. Kinetic or hands-on activities create great preschool activities for 3-year-olds. Maria Montessori observed that between 3 and a half to 5 years old is the sensitive period for mathematics, during which children can grasp concepts more easily. 


How to Make the Math Play Mat

Unfortunately, I don't have step-by-step photos of the process of making this math play mat. However, I previously created these number stencils, which I used for a few projects.

Making Number Stencils form Math Play
  1. I printed out large numbers, but unfortunately, I can't remember the font size (possibly 56). I glued them to thick cardboard from a box and cut them out to create stencils. 
  2. With the stencils facing backward, I traced around 0 and 2-9 once and 1 twice and cut them out. 
  3. I chose to use a black base page, with the numbers in white. I'd recommend contrasting colors. Determine what works best for you. 
  4. This step could be done with scissors; however, I cut 5 mm wide strips of paper from large A3 sheets using a paper cutter. I made 6 shorter vertical lines the length of the paper you will use and 3 long horizontal lines the width of the base paper. 
  5. I traced around the lid of a small Pritt Stick glue 54 times and cut them out (I'd recommend listening to an audiobook or podcast while doing this!) 
  6. I arranged everything on the paper completely free to make it all fit. I carefully glued it all down with Pritt Stick glue. I laminated it, but maybe sticky-back or contact paper would work if you carefully smooth it out with a ruler. 

Uses of the Math Play Mat 

Counting Math Play

With the child I care for now, 3-4 times a week at the beginning of tabletop activity time, we always start by counting while pointing at the mat. This is why the mat is featured in many photos of all sorts of activities throughout Practical Playthings' website.

It creates protection for tables, tablecloths, or floors from paint, glue, crayon marks, play dough, Kinetic sand, etc . (Just be aware that the numbers and dots do get transferred when using crayons). So, I set up a crayon rubbing activity of the number mat with 2 A4 pieces of paper taped at the corners.

Crayon Rubbing on Mat Play Mat

Beans Math Play 

Bean Math Play

This was the first time she matched items to the dots on the mat. 

Play Dough Balls Math Play

Play Dough on Math Play Mat

The fact that I don't dye the play dough I make is the reason I chose a black background for this mat. 

Craft Pom-Pom Math Play

Pom-pom math play

Pom-poms make a fun way to learn the quantities of numbers from 1-10. 

Hair Tie Math Play  

Hair Tie Math Play

"Use what you have" is the motto of this site. She has excess hair accessories, so we used them to mix up this activity. 

Find more Math Activities Here. Check out more Learning Activities for 3-Year-Olds.