In kindergarten, children work to develop their number sense and counting skills. Children should be able to count to 10 when they come to kindergarten. During the school year they will learn to count aloud by ones, fives and 10s, write and identify numbers up to 30 and name ordinal numbers first through 10th. They will also learn to estimate and compare quantities, interpret simple pictographs and develop a sense of time and calendars.
In kindergarten children learn to count and identify different coins. They learn to identify all of the major coins and begin adding and subtracting monetary amounts. Kindergartners also learn to identify bills and understand their relationship to coins. Children learn to total different amounts of coins and decide if they have enough money to purchase a particular object. Children often learn to add and subtract money while they are learning basic addition and subtraction skills.
Children learn to sort objects by color, shape, size and other attributes. They will be able to identify ways that a group of objects is similar and different. They also learn to identify simple patterns and decide what comes next in a sequence. For example, in the pattern "blue, red, blue, red," they learn that "blue" is the next color in the sequence. Children also learn to recognize different shapes like circles, triangles and squares, and to identify the basic features of each shape.
In kindergarten, children start learning about addition and subtraction. At this age they usually practice these skills with manipulatives such as cereal or pieces of candy. They practice simple math facts both at home and in the classroom and may also start creating simple story problems that illustrate either addition or subtraction concepts. Although children ultimately need to memorize their basic math facts, they focus more on manipulatives and understanding the addition and subtraction processes at this stage.