Mathematics is one of the Specific Areas of learning and it is broken down into two aspects:

• Number 
• Numerical Patterns

Mathematics is all about understanding and using shape, space, measures and numbers to solve everyday problems like how much sticky tape to use to wrap a parcel or the number of red balloons that would need to be bought so that there were enough for all the children attending a party. Helping children to enjoy Mathematics is probably one of the most important things that adults can do so that children realise that mathematics is a way of finding things out and solving problems. 

Maths is one of the four specific areas within the Early Years Foundation Stage
 (EYFS). Each specific area is divided into Early Learning Goals (End of Reception), for maths these are:

• Number

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Have a deep understanding of number to 10, including the composition of each number;
• Subitise (recognise quantities without counting) up to 5;
• Automatically recall (without reference to rhymes, counting or other aids) number bonds up to 5 (including subtraction facts) and some number bonds to 10, including double facts.

• Numerical Patterns

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Verbally count beyond 20, recognising the pattern of the counting system;
• Compare quantities up to 10 in different contexts, recognising when one quantity is greater than, less than or the same as the other quantity;
• Explore and represent patterns within numbers up to 10, including evens and odds, double facts and how quantities can be distributed equally.