Life’s pretty good when you’re holding 17 lollipops. Or rather, life’s pretty good when you think you’re holding 17 lollipops.
A few months ago, I was talking to a toddler who had just attended the library’s annual trick-or-treat storytime. After listening to Halloween books, attendees traveled upstairs to trick-or-treat around the offices of Town Hall. Now the toddler and I were back in the library, and she was happily clutching three lollipops in one hand.
“How many lollipops do you have?” I asked to start a conversation.
Find out what's happening in Oxfordfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
She counted each one. “1, 2, 3,” she said but kept going, returning to lollipops she had already counted. “4, 5…” She skipped “6,” then continued perfectly: “7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17.”
Why crush her spirits? “Seventeen lollipops! Wow!” I exclaimed, and she went on her merry way with her sugary loot.
Find out what's happening in Oxfordfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Sometimes, it’s worth refraining from correction so that kids can just be kids. Yet in the end, of course, we want our children to be able to count, to do math, to succeed. So eventually, we need to explain that six comes after five and that there are really only three lollipops in that hand.
But teaching our children these things doesn’t have to be devoid of fun. In fact, uncovering the secrets of math can be as exciting as unwrapping a piece of candy… if it’s done in the right way.
Stories, songs, finger paints and yes, even sweets – these are more likely to be part of children’s playtime than a math lesson. Yet this month, they’ll all be incorporated in the library’s new series of March Math-ness programs on three Mondays at 5:30 p.m.
Each free program will focus on a skill that lays the foundation for mathematical concepts that children will use daily for the rest of their lives. Topics will include counting on March 7, matching on March 14 and patterns on March 28.
Instead of sitting through school-like lectures, however, children will be introduced to each concept as they listen to a related picture book. Then, they will practice applying their new knowledge through activities, such as songs, crafts or playing with their food (in an educational way, of course). To kids, the whole process will be as entertaining as a regular storytime, but there will be an added bonus – improved math skills!
No registration is required for these programs, and they’re free. So there’s nothing to lose by attending, except for maybe the illusion that 17 lollipops can fit in your hand. But who can eat 17 lollipops at one time anyway?
