My daughter already knows first-grade math. What can I do?


It is great that your daughter already has a head-start when it comes to math. One way to keep her interested in math and help her continue to improve her math skills is to create fun math opportunities wherever you are; whether it be at home (e.g., following recipes and measuring ingredients teaches children important math skills such as measuring, quantity and fractions), when you are out (e.g., adding the number of items you add to your grocery cart), and even in the car (e.g. counting the number of red cars she sees or the number of traffic lights on the way home). When you make math relevant and engaging, you are teaching your daughter that math is a vital part of our everyday life, and more importantly, it can be fun!

Jennie Ito, Ph.D.

Child Development Expert

Jennie Ito is a mother of two and a child development consultant who specializes in children’s play and toys. Before becoming a consultant for LeapFrog, she was an intern at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, and later worked as a content expert for the Association of Children’s Museum’s “Playing for Keeps” Play Initiative. Jennie earned her doctorate degree in developmental psychology at Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada.