Make math learning both meaningful and fun by building on children's natural curiosity to help them grow into confident problem solvers and investigators of math concepts.

Using five math-related questions children wonder about as a framework, this book helps you go deeper into everyday math with children by offering:

• A basic overview of math ideas behind matching and sorting, patterns, number sense, measuring, and spatial relationships
• 20 activities appropriate for children in preschool and kindergarten based on new and classic children's books, games, and classroom routines
• Suggestions for individualizing activities for diverse learners
• Recommendations for more than 75 children's books that encourage math-rich thinking and investigation
• Examples of intentional questions, comments, and conversations that stretch and focus children's understanding of math concepts

This groundbreaking book looks at the development of mathematical thinking in infants and toddlers, with an emphasis on the earliest stage, from zero to three, when mathematical thinking and problem solving first emerge as natural instincts. The text explores the four precursor math concepts--attribute, comparison, change, and pattern--with an emphasis on how development occurs when it is nurtured by loving, knowledgeable others. The authors call this the CAIR principle: Closely Attend & Intentionally Respond. Sharing their stories of working with a wide range of zero to three caregivers and educators, the authors stress the difference between arithmetic skills and their definition of mathematics as a logical way of thinking that allows for increasing precision. Each user-friendly chapter includes suggestions for highly effective practices that are embedded into everyday interactions and routines. Early care providers can use this resource to develop young children's interest in mathematics, ensuring that they are ready for the big ideas they will encounter in preschool.

Book Features:

• Provides two sections per chapter citing the most current research on infant and toddler cognitive development in relation to mathematical thinking.
• Offers concrete ways to help caregivers and professionals draw out the math that is all around us.
• Blends three domains of human development--social-emotional, physical, and cognitive.
• Examines the What, Who, and How of each precursor concept, with authentic anecdotes and What the Research Says sections.
• Offers a reader-friendly design that includes highlight boxes of authentic anecdotes, photos of infants and toddlers, recommendations for activities and books that support development of each precursor math concept, and reflective practice discussion points at the end of each chapter.

Drawing from 30 years of teaching and professional development experience, the author offers a roadmap for using children's literature to provide authentic learning. Featuring a storyteller's voice, each chapter includes a case study about how a particular fiction or nonfiction work can be used in an early childhood classroom; a series of open-ended questions to help readers construct their own inquiry units; and a bibliography of children's literature. This book provides a unique synthesis of ideas based on constructivist approaches to learning, including the importance of positive dispositions and learning communities, the nature of higher-order thinking, and the relationship between methods such as guided inquiry in the sciences and balanced literacy.

This groundbreaking book looks at the development of mathematical thinking in infants and toddlers, with an emphasis on the earliest stage, from zero to three, when mathematical thinking and problem solving first emerge as natural instincts. The text explores the four precursor math concepts--attribute, comparison, change, and pattern--with an emphasis on how development occurs when it is nurtured by loving, knowledgeable others. The authors call this the CAIR principle: Closely Attend & Intentionally Respond. Sharing their stories of working with a wide range of zero to three caregivers and educators, the authors stress the difference between arithmetic skills and their definition of mathematics as a logical way of thinking that allows for increasing precision. Each user-friendly chapter includes suggestions for highly effective practices that are embedded into everyday interactions and routines. Early care providers can use this resource to develop young children's interest in mathematics, ensuring that they are ready for the big ideas they will encounter in preschool.

Book Features:

• Provides two sections per chapter citing the most current research on infant and toddler cognitive development in relation to mathematical thinking.
• Offers concrete ways to help caregivers and professionals draw out the math that is all around us.
• Blends three domains of human development--social-emotional, physical, and cognitive.
• Examines the What, Who, and How of each precursor concept, with authentic anecdotes and What the Research Says sections.
• Offers a reader-friendly design that includes highlight boxes of authentic anecdotes, photos of infants and toddlers, recommendations for activities and books that support development of each precursor math concept, and reflective practice discussion points at the end of each chapter.