A guide launched last month by Stirling Council, Early Intervention - a Celebration of Numeracy, sets out practical examples of how local schools are improving pupils' skills.
The guide, intended for both parents and teachers, explains how a Bob the Builder puppet and a 'Can you fix it?' bag of numbered building bricks can provide a context for teaching children how to solve simple addition and subtraction problems.
Other ideas include using toys, such as 'the bear who makes mistakes', as a focus for teaching children how to count, games such as snakes and ladders and equipment such as magnetic numbers on a board.
The guide also suggests that books such as The 101 Dalmatians can be used as a starting point for exploring numbers and making links with literacy.
Stirling Council's head of early childhood, Linda Kinney, said, 'Numeracy is an important tool that helps us deal with the ordinary events and demands of daily life. Helping children learn how to grasp these key skills early gives them the confidence to access all other aspects of the curriculum.
'Sharing the good practice that is contained in A Celebration of Numeracy will have positive outcomes for children and their parents, as well as staff.'
Key topics covered in the document include how to organise the classroom and its resources to create the best environment for teaching numeracy, how to develop effective teaching and learning approaches, how different themes and situations can motivate children to learn and how learning through play can help children develop their mathematical confidence.
There are also sections on how to help children develop counting and mental arithmetic skills and how children can learn collaboratively both with their peers and adults in their family, creating a link between learning at school and home.
The numeracy strategy follows the success of the literacy initiative that Stirling Council launched two years ago.
For further information about the numeracy strategy contact Lesley Gibb, Children's Services, Stirling Council, on 0845 277 7000.
