Numbers 1-10

Counting Exercises

It is important for the child to have many opportunities to count so that rote counting is well
established. Counting can begin well before the exercises for Mathematics are introduced.
Following are some ideas for incorporating counting naturally into the work cycle:
1. Count the children.

2. Count the group by gender, color of eyes, color of hair, type of shoe, etc. Additionally,
you can write the counted quantity of each group down and add, if appropriate. You can
also count the number of hands (legs, arms, feet, fingers) of the group.

3. Count the children when they are in line.

4. Count in different volums and rhythms (loud/soft; slow/fast; accenting every other
number, every third number, etc. Leave out some numbers and say the “odds” and
“evens”, count by twos, fives, tens, etc.

5. Count a range, indicating where to start and stop. Let’s count from 13 to 22. Let’s count
starting with 5 and counting to 15. Let’s count to 30 by fives.

6. Clap different rhythms with the counting.

7. Count for all the real needs of the day - napkins for snack, etc.

8. Count in different languages.

9. Vary counting up and counting down.

10. Incorporate counting in finger plays and songs.