That is why I thought I should mention the trouble with the English counting words above ten and below twenty.  In many languages, each of those numbers’ values is described by the words themselves.  Eleven should really be “ten plus one,” and twelve should be “ten plus two,” and so on.  This would make so much more sense as children begin to associate the counting words with their values.

Perhaps it is wise to explain to your children as they begin counting above ten, that eleven really means ten plus one, and fourteen really means ten plus four.

Remember, many children can count because they have memorized the counting words (rote counting).  This is not an indication of number sense as much as it is a growing competence in language and memory. Meaningful counting begins when children connect the number words with objects correctly as quantity.