Math Learning Steps

It helps with meaning

Counting down is surprisingly effective at solidifying understanding of the number sequence. Many very young children who have learned to count from 1 to 10 have a difficult time when they first try to count from 10 down to 1. This counting in the opposite order forces them to think in a fresh way about how the numbers are ordered. This will be particularly true when your child starts counting to 100 and they start thinking about what happens as they go from one decade to the next – say between 69 and 70.

It helps with subtraction

Counting down is also very helpful with learning to subtract. A child who can count down will very quickly learn how to subtract 1 and 2. It is also helpful if counting down becomes automatic, so they can use their full attention on counting down the three steps when doing 9 subtract 3, for example.

Use when natural

There are many times when counting down is the natural thing to do. If there are ten seconds left on a timer, you can count down together with the counter. If you say that something can be done three more times, then you can count down from three together.

Include 0

It is usually natural to include 0 when counting down, and this is a good thing to do. If you are counting down the time remaining, when you reach 0 you have 0 seconds left. If you count down how many pieces of food your child can eat, when you reach 0 there will be no food left. It is helpful to make 0 a normal and expected quantity to work with.