| Matching and sorting objects into various categories is | | | | colours. |
| a necessary skill for numeracy. Parents of pre-school | | | | Packing away the shopping is another opportunity to |
| children can help them become familiar with these | | | | teach pre-schoolers how to sort and match. They can |
| concepts through playful interaction with familiar | | | | sort big packets from small packets and large tins |
| objects in their environment. | | | | from small tins. Cartons of fruit juice can be matched |
| Going to primary school is a big occasion in the life of | | | | using the pictures on the packaging. Children can also |
| any pre-school child. He or she will look forward with | | | | separate the fruit from the vegetables if they are |
| excitement and perhaps a little trepidation to walking | | | | given very obvious ones such as bananas and grapes |
| into that classroom. There will be lots to learn and | | | | and potatoes and onions. |
| pre-school preparation can make the child's first formal | | | | Young children can be asked to help at mealtimes by |
| educational experiences happy and successful ones. | | | | laying the table. They can be asked to pair knives and |
| Pre-schoolers will be taught how to observe, | | | | forks before putting them on the table. They can also |
| differentiate, sort and match various objects. These | | | | pair a cup with a saucer for each place setting. |
| skills are essential for learning the causes and effects | | | | Pre-schoolers can be asked to sort the cutlery after |
| of manipulating numbers. | | | | the washing up has been done, ready to go into the |
| Parents can prepare their children for these concepts. | | | | cutlery drawer. |
| They can start with simple things such as sorting toys | | | | Parents can put a variety of items together and ask |
| into groups. For example, soft toys can be selected | | | | their pre-school child to find one object with more than |
| from an assortment of toys of various textures. | | | | one attribute from among them. For example, a child |
| Wheeled toys can be sorted into cars, trucks and | | | | can be asked to find the small yellow ball or find the |
| wagons. Children can also be asked to sort toys into | | | | big wooden car. |
| groups of the same colour. Books can be sorted and | | | | Bathtime can be made even more fun if the child is |
| arranged according to size. | | | | encouraged to experiment with a handful of objects to |
| Laundry day is a great opportunity to play at sorting | | | | sort those that float from those that sink. |
| and matching. Children can be encouraged to pair | | | | These tasks should be made into games as much as |
| socks of different colours or separate dresses from | | | | possible. Children learn faster when they are playing |
| skirts or shorts from tee shirts. They can also be | | | | and this will make learning fun for both parent and child. |
| encouraged to separate clothes into piles of similar | | | | |