Welcome!

Thank you for purchasing the Little Math Learning System.

The decision you have taken to invest in your child's learning is about to change your and your child's lives for the better.

Little Math is designed to give your child a solid foundation in elementary mathematics - and more importantly, a ready ease

with this important discipline. Considering how math impacts us all in our daily lives, this ready ease is something sorely lacking in many of us.

Download fun icon sets!

The most satisfying thing about producing Little Math so far has been the tremendous feedback we have received from parents. Children who previously would not pay attention to their math lessons have been riveted - in large part thanks to the plethora of amusing shapes and icons available to all via the BrillKids Forum.

I urge you therefore to make the forum your first port of call. The pool of icons it contains is constantly growing, as parents continue to create personalized icons using images of their children's favorite animals, toys and cartoon characters. If you decide to make your own icons, remember you can earn loyalty points by sharing them with the community.

Besides making it as fun as possible for young children to learn math, Little Math also makes it as easy as possible for parents to teach math. Thanks to the Little Math curriculum, no preparation is involved in giving lessons - simply sit down at the computer with your child, and press play.

It will not take much time out of your day to teach your child math. In fact, you may be surprised by the brevity of your child's lessons, initially. While early lessons are very short, the length of your child's lessons will grow as the curriculum builds, and math and review lessons are added.

Before you start...

We really believe that with Little Math, we have taken all of the hard work out of teaching for you. There are just two things I would urge you to read, before you begin using your Little Math Learning System...

Understand the curriculum!

Why are your Little Math lessons designed the way they are? Understanding the Little Math Curriculum.

Check out the Start Guide!

Got a question about Little Math? You can find FAQs, video tutorials and helpful tips, all in the program's Start Guide.

Last but certainly not least...

The number one rule of teaching is to have fun doing it. Results should never be the focus of lessons. Instead, treat lessons primarily as a time for bonding, and enjoy the learning experience with your child.

Do remember to share your teaching experiences with us at the BrillKids Forum - we'd love to hear from you!

Happy teaching!

KL Wong
Founder, BrillKids

Setting Up Little Math

You have already successfully installed the Little Math software.

If you are a Trial User

For Trial users, there is nothing more you need to do to start using the software. Your trial comes with the first 9 days of the curriculum, and you can use this at anytime during your 14-day trial period.

If you have a Little Math License

If you have a Little Math license, you should do the following if you have not already done so, in the following order:

Step 1: Create a BrillKids member account

If you purchased online, an account will have been created for you already. You can create a BrillKids Account here. (You will be taken to the BrillKids International website.)

Click here to learn how to create a BrillKids Account

Step 2: Install your license key

If you purchased a box set, the license key is included in your Software CD box.

Click here to learn how to import your license key from your CD box

If you purchased your product online, you may obtain your license key from your Account Management page.

Step 3: Install your curriculum content

If you purchased a box set, please insert the CD-rom discs contained in your Curriculum Content CD box.

Click here to learn how to import your curriculum content from your CD-Rom

If you purchased your product online, you may download your curriculum content from your Account Management page.

For support regarding setting up your Little Math, please see our Help Desk.

Starting Your Lessons

Introduction to the Little Math Curriculum

The Little Math Learning System enables you to teach quantity recognition (using random icon placement) at the time when your child is most receptive - before the age of two and a half.

For older children, all lessons can be set to grid icon placement mode. This enables quantity appreciation through skip counting.

Babies and young children adore Little Math's fun, customizable icons - with everything from shapes to animals to cartoon characters. You will have unlimited access to new icons via the BrillKids Forum. Every lesson is exciting with personalized icons designed to appeal to your child!

How to Play the Curriculum Lessons

The easiest way to start playing your lessons is from the HOME screen.

First, make sure the right Course is selected (such as "Semester 1"), pressing on the "Courses" tab if necessary.

To start the lesson, simply select Day 001, and press the PLAY button down below.

When to Play?

The curriculum is designed to be played 5 days a week, once or twice a day. Each session only needs to be played once. You may find it convenient to play Session 1 in the morning, and Session 2 in the evening. Many working parents like playing Session 1 before leaving for work, and Session 2 after returning from work, from Monday to Friday, and either taking a break during the weekends, or using that time to catch up on any missed days.

More About Each Lesson Type

Before you start the lessons with your child, it is useful to know a bit more about each lesson type, how they work and how they are supposed to be played.

Each Little Math session is made up of these different lesson segments:

Quantity lessons

By teaching your child quantity, you can enable her to understand the reality of numbers (instead of just the symbols - 1, 2, etc - that represent them). This in turn will give your child a deeper understanding of mathematical concepts!

Equations

You can also use Little Math's powerful features to teach your child mathematical equations! Little Math enables you to use icons, the numeric symbol of the number and the written word with your equations, and depending on your child's level of learning, you may begin with simple two step equations, and advance to using up to 5 integers for the equation!

Numerals

Little Math also supports teaching math using the written numerals, so your child can familiarize with the written representations of the number quantities!

Your Frame Of Mind

One of the most important thing you must remember when teaching your child is this:

Always keep the lessons FUN and JOYFUL!

In doing so, this also means:

Focusing on results tends to bring about negative emotions such as anxiety and disappointment, which will be picked up by your child. Similarly, forcing your child is counter-productive and would lead her to associate math with something negative.

Instead, treat lesson time as a time for bonding with your child. The aim is to expose your child to math and to have fun while doing so, thereby giving her a joyful and loving experience. Keeping a bonding-focused mindset will make you a much more effective teacher, and you are also likely to find that your child learning math is a very pleasant side-effect.

Remember, this is not a race! Any exposure to math that you give to your child during the early years will already be very beneficial.

So, just RELAX, and HAVE FUN!

Other Important Advice

Apart from keeping the lessons fun and joyful, there are no rules that are set in stone!

For example, we suggest that the curriculum lessons should be played 5 days a week, once or twice a day. Like many of our other suggestions, this is only a guideline. It is there to help you if you choose to use it, not to enslave you.

We always stress that YOU are your child's first and best teacher, because you know your child best. Every child is different, and even the same child may behave differently at different times! What's most important is that you play it by ear and go according to your child's moods as well as your own circumstances, which may change from time to time.

So if you're tired and you want to skip a day, no problem! If your child doesn't seem to want to have lessons that day or even that week, that's absolutely fine! If you feel that your child already knows the concepts and you want to skip some lessons, do it!