How To Support Your Child’s Learning With Foundation Maths Worksheets

Introducing maths concepts from an early age is an important part of a child's development. It lays the foundation for future maths learning and developing an understanding of many concepts they will face in everyday life. 

Take a look at how you can support your child’s learning below:

The Foundation or Prep Maths Curriculum

In the Foundation or Prep level of maths, children learn a variety of concepts by making links between their environment, everyday language, and mathematical activities.

At this age, they will generally learn to:

• Classify and sort objects into sets and form simple correspondences between them, such as when the sets are equal size or one is smaller or bigger.
• Develop an understanding of concepts like numbers, counting, numerical order, and simple patterns.
• Compare common objects by length, mass, capacity, order and duration.
• Name, sort and describe familiar everyday shapes and objects, and describe position and movement in their environment.
• Investigate situations that require data collection and presentation in simple ways.

You can find more information about the Victorian Curriculum for Foundation Maths here.

Prep Maths Activities

Early mathematical learning and experiences focus largely on children’s play and connecting learning with their life and daily activities, interests and curiosity. By making learning fun and engaging, you allow them to develop skills at their own pace and explore the world around them. 

If you want to help children develop their maths skills at school or home, here are some great prep level maths activities to try:

• Make maths part of everyday conversations - Talking to children about maths doesn’t have to be about mathematical equations, instead it can be as simple as counting trees or comparing heights. Removing any pressure and making it part of your normal conversation will help to build connections between maths concepts and their immediate environment. 

• Involve familiar toys - Incorporating maths during play will help to connect maths concepts with something they are already familiar with and interested in. This could be simple counting exercises with Lego blocks, or making patterns with different shaped or sized toys.

• Use water play at bath time - Water play is a popular way to teach children a variety of concepts from a young age. It can help children to understand volume, weight, and other simple mathematical and scientific concepts, as well as develop their fine motor skills and coordination. Use bath time and their favourite bath toys to explore different maths concepts in a fun way. 

• Get them to teach you maths - A great way to engage children in mathematical learning is to get them to teach you. As they begin to understand new concepts, ask them to explain it to you or teach you as much as they know. This reinforces it in their minds and can spark curiosity when they get stuck. 

• Use fun maths worksheets - Worksheets don’t have to feel like a chore. Beginner maths books should have fun, engaging activities that allow children to explore concepts at their own pace and foster confidence in numeracy. Fitzroy Prep maths workbooks use minimal English and allow students to build competence and interest in their formative years.

The Best Worksheets to Help Them Learn

Fitzroy Maths workbooks use the same step-by-step principle and logical sequencing as the Fitzroy Readers. This ensures that children can easily understand new concepts and work at their own pace. Whether you’re using the Fitzroy Maths workbooks at home or in the classroom, they are one of the best and most comprehensive ways for Prep level students to learn and practise maths. 

Here’s the best Prep maths worksheets to start with:

Fitzroy Maths Workbooks 1-5

Designed specifically as beginner maths workbooks for children 4 years old or at the Prep / Foundation or equivalent level, the Fitzroy Maths workbooks 1-5 are the perfect starting point for early mathematical development.  

The set of 5 workbooks includes concepts like:

• Quantity, size, speed and shape
• Matching shapes, regardless of size
• Counting groups of objects up to 20
• Writing the numerals 0 to 20
• Basic subtraction
• Writing in numerical order
• Comparing sizes, weights and capacities, etc.

Find out more about the workbooks here. 

Fitzroy Maths Workbooks 6-10

As children progress in their learning or if they are particularly advanced, they can also move through to level 6-10. The Fitzroy Maths workbooks 6-10 are ideal for students in year 1 or equivalent.  

These workbooks will introduce concepts such as:

• Basic addition up to 100
• Subtraction up to 100
• Adding 10s and 100s
• Reading 3-digit numbers
• Knowing odds and evens
• Counting notes and coins
• Sequencing numbers with intervals.

Both the 1-5 and 6-10 workbooks use minimal English and allow students to work at their own pace, fostering confidence and competence in numeracy in the formative years.

If you’re unsure where to start with our maths worksheets, take a look at our guide here.