What is Subitizing? An Important Early Math Skill Many Families Don’t Know About

Have you heard of subitizing? While many parents and educators may not be familiar with this term, it's actually a fundamental math skill that both you and your child use every day!

Subitizing is the brain's ability to instantly recognize how many objects are in a small group without counting them one by one. When you quickly see that there are three dots on a dice or two cookies left on a plate without counting - that's subitizing in action!

The Development of Subitizing in Early Childhood

Research shows that subitizing develops remarkably early in children's mathematical journey. Studies show that babies as young as six months old demonstrate subitizing abilities (Antell & Keating, 1983). As children grow, their subitizing skills naturally expand:

• By age 2: Most toddlers can subitize up to three items

• Ages 4-5: Preschoolers and kindergarteners can often subitize up to five items

  
  

Why Subitizing Matters for Math Development

Interestingly, subitizing is actually a separate skill from counting and develops before counting abilities emerge. In fact, researchers found that the ability to subitize small numbers is a crucial stepping stone that precedes counting development (Le Corre, Van de Walle, Brannon, & Carey, 2006).

Nurturing children’s subitizing skills can give them a significant advantage in their math journey. As a foundational skill, subitizing helps children with more advanced concepts as they grow. Subitizing helps children develop an intuitive understanding of numbers and how they relate to each other. When kids can recognize small groups quickly, they can start to see how numbers are composed (e.g., a group of 3 and a group of 2 make 5). The ability to compose and decompose numbers gives kids a big advantage when it comes to addition and subtraction.

Two Types of Subitizing

Perceptual Subitizing

This is the simpler form of subitizing, where a child can immediately recognize the quantity of a small group of objects (usually up to 5) without counting. This is the type of subitizing many of us engage in when looking at dice, for example. When we see the pattern below we automatically recognize there are 4 dots.

Conceptual Subitizing

As children develop, they can move on to conceptual subitizing. This more advanced skill involves recognizing larger quantities by breaking them into smaller, manageable groups. For example, a child might quickly identify 7 dots by seeing them as a group of 3 and a group of 4.

The Impact of Subitizing on Math Development: What Research Shows

Subitizing doesn't just help kids recognize numbers quickly - it's actually a building block for many important math skills! When children learn to see numbers in different parts (like spotting that 6 can be 3 and 3), they're developing a deeper understanding of how numbers work together. Research shows this understanding of number combinations is linked to success with more complex math later on (Clements, 1999; Fuchs et al., 2006).

One interesting finding researchers discovered is that by the time kids reach third grade, those who are good at breaking numbers into smaller groups have developed better strategies for solving math problems compared to their peers who haven't developed this skill (Starkey & McCandliss, 2014).

Fostering Subitizing Skills at Home

Here are some fun and easy ways to help your child develop their subitizing skills:

1. Dice Games: Roll a die and ask your child to quickly tell you the number without counting.

2. Domino Play: Use dominoes to practice recognizing dot patterns.

3. Nature Walk: Look for small groups of objects (like flowers or rocks) and ask your child to identify the quantity quickly.

4. Check out our Subitizing Games Dot Flash and Dot Pattern Match 

Remember, the key is to make these activities fun and engaging. Celebrate your child's successes and encourage them to explain their thinking. You may be surprised at how quickly your child's subitizing skills develop with regular practice, setting them up for future math success!

Fun Fact: Animals Can Subitize Too!

Your children might enjoy learning that subitizing isn't just for humans - it's a fascinating ability shared by many animals too.  This innate capacity to instantly recognize small quantities without counting plays a crucial role in survival and cognitive development for various species. 

References

Antell, S. E., & Keating, D. P. (1983). Perception of Numerical Invariance in Neonates. Child Development, 54(3), 695–701. https://doi.org/10.2307/1130057

Clements, D. H. (1999). Subitizing: What is it? Why teach it?  Teaching Children Mathematics, 5, 400-405. 

Fuchs, L. S., Fuchs, D., Compton, D.L., Powell, S. R., Seethaler, P. M., Capizzi, A. M., . . . Fletcher, J. M. (2006). The cognitive correlates of third-grade skill in arithmetic, algorithmic computation, and arithmetic word problems. Journal of Educational Psychology, 98(1), 29-43. http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.lib.uwm.edu/10.1037/0022-0663.98.1.29

Le Corre, M., Van de Walle, G., Brannon, E. M., & Carey, S. (2006). Revisiting the competence/performance debate in the acquisition of the counting principles. Cognitive Psychology, 52(2), 130-169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cogpsych.2005.07.002

Starkey, G. S. & McCandliss, B. D. (2014). The emergence of "groupitizing" in children’s numerical cognition. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 126, 120-137. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2014.03.006