Counting Blocks
When it comes to children’s educational toys, sometimes simple is best. Flashing lights, moving parts, and electronic bells and whistles can be attention-grabbing, but old-fashioned, simple toys, like counting blocks, can be just as fun and even more educational. Counting blocks are wooden cubes with numbers on the side, often sold in a set with a variety of other wooden counting shapes; for instance, sticks of 10 cubes and flat squares of 100 cubes.
Playing with these physical representations of numbers allows children to work on their number recognition, by looking at the digits printed on the side of each cube, spatial reasoning, as they fit the cubes and bars together, and basic understanding of addition, subtraction and even multiplication, as the bars and cubes are rearranged into new combinations. The simplicity and effectiveness of these toys make them a great addition to any collection of educational toys, especially considering their long life and relatively low price.
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Counting blocks are somewhat similar to building blocks, another classic childrens toy, and kids will often play with the blocks by constructing towers or stacks out of them. While this might not appear to be fulfilling the educational function of the blocks, children playing with the blocks in this way are still being exposed to numbers and improving their spatial reasoning. It’s important to allow children, particularly younger children, to interact with the blocks in a natural manner, without putting pressure on them to focus on the mathematical aspect.
They will expand their knowledge of numbers the more they interact with the blocks, and the more they enjoy playing with the blocks, the more often they will do this! Of course, as children grow in their mathematical understanding, the toys can be used by teachers or parents to illustrate new concepts. This will obviously be more structure, and much more like teaching than playing, another use for the toy which demonstrates its versatility.
There are downsides to counting blocks. The small cubes can be dangerous for young children, particularly under the age of 3, as they can pose a chocking hazard. Also, the many small pieces can be easy to misplace, unless the set of blocks is always carefully stored and only taken out in a contained play area. These drawbacks aside, counting blocks have clear benefits for children, as they are both fun and educational. These affordable sets of wooden cubes can teach number skills, spatial reasoning, and mathematical concepts. They might be simple, but these educational toys are classics for a reason!
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