Use age-appropriate concrete objects as your math manipulatives. Choose objects like wooden blocks, plastic chips or cereal pieces that the child can easily pick up and maneuver. Base-ten block products designed specifically for this learning process are also available.
Place 10 objects in a row and instruct the child to take one at a time and move them into a pile as he counts aloud from one to 10. Place three blocks in front of the child and instruct him to count how many are there. Place an additional two blocks in another pile and instruct the child to count them. Combine the two groups while verbally stating "two blocks added to three blocks equals" and instruct the child to count the total number of blocks to find the answer.
Place eight blocks in front of the child and instruct her to count them aloud. Remove three blocks from the group into a separate pile and instruct the child to count this group aloud. Verbally state "three blocks subtracted from eight blocks equals" and have the child count the remaining number of blocks aloud.
Repeat addition and subtraction activities with the concrete objects, using a variety of number combinations. Increase the difficulty of the activity by combining more than one type of object into one group.