Early numeracy for toddlers

Toddlers are natural mathematicians! Start building their math skills by talking about numbers, sizes, shapes, and time to lay the foundation for future learning.

Given their increasing understanding of symbolic representation and their growing working memories, toddlers are natural mathematicians.
Your toddler doesn’t have to learn addition or count to 100! The goal at this stage is to learn about cardinality - that each number word maps onto a quantity of things. For example, one duck, one cookie, and one block all have “one” in common, but are completely different objects. Hearing you talk about numbers and quantities helps them learn this.
The more "number talk" a toddler hears, the stronger their math skills in preschool. Math skills build over time so establishing a strong foundation in the understanding of foundational skills supports development over time.
Many studies have shown that parents tend to have lower expectations for their daughter’s math abilities than for their sons. As a result, number talk for daughters is often less complex.
Research has found that your attachment with your toddler is linked to their math skills in fifth grade.

Count things in everyday life (going up stairs, ducks in the park).
Talk about size, quantity, space, and distance (taller, shorter, close, far, small, big, behind, inside). "One more! This one has less."
Point out shapes in everyday life, books, blocks - anywhere! Describe the characteristics of each one. "Your Cheerios are circles—they are round. They have an even smaller circle inside! What does it look like if you bite it in half?”
Talk about time and past/future events to help your toddler develop their mental timeline. "In five minutes, we're going to the park. You were 5-months-old in this picture. What did we eat for dinner yesterday? In "two sleeps", we're going to grandma's house."