Today societies and whole cultures rely on automated counting, in most cases, computers doing all the work. We find counting to be a bit of a rote learned skill, but you can often make it fun in variety of different ways. Please see our worksheets below to help your students have more fun while learning to count. It is helpful to practice this skill by telling students you have a job for them and need to know how many jellybeans are in this jar. You can have them count just about anything, but the focus has to be in consistency. It is also helpful to have them complete dot to dot worksheets as they continue to help them think in a sequential manner. You can scroll down and find a whole bunch of these connect the dots worksheets below.
Counting Worksheet Categories
Click any of the images or words below to print out the counting sheets.
Counting to 100 Chart
This can be seen as an advance in counting because the value goes to 100, but many teachers like to start here right after students learn their numbers.
Counting To 10
As basic as this skill gets. This worksheets on basic numeracy skills with the help of visual aids.
Counting with Number Lines
A really nice way to complement the skill with a visual that can help you. This is really a homerun approach to helping students that are struggling with basic skills.
Before and After
This gets students to understand what a sequence is without even realizing it. They will be given a value and then asked to determine what value comes before and after it consecutively.
By 2s, 5s, and 10s
Our first introduction to skip counts. All the worksheets focus on these exact skips.
Count and Write
Straight object counts followed by number composition. Students will also get practice forming numbers.
Counting Sets and Comparing
This also leads us to compare numbers with greater than, less than statements. Students will determine which is bigger and smaller.
Counting Through Coloring Worksheets
Use your crayons to follow along here. Colored pencils will do the trick here too. Students will be asked to color a specific number of items. This is nice to coupling with art.
Connect the Dots (Up To 20)
And you thought this was senseless busy work! These types of sheets really help students build their mental rolodex of sequence.
Connect the Dots (Up To 30)
The counts grow a little larger and the fonts get a little smaller. We do have some really solid pictures to work with here.
Connect the Dots (Up To 50)
This should take them a few minutes to complete. We go up some higher integers.
Counting with Fixed Numbers
This can really help build confidence and start them in the right direction. Students will be given a specific integer and then asked to go up or down.
Counting with Missing Numbers
A great way to stimulate some algebraic thinking and students to start thinking at the next level.
Skip Counting Skills
The values that you are asked to skip by will continue to change as you get better it this skill. The job of the students is to fill in those gaps.
Counting with Number Ranges
This is an advance form of these skills. It involves skip counts and finding unknown values. Students should understand their basic operators in order to tackle this.
Counting Sequences
These are missing counts that will require to determine the number pattern first. You should encourage students to use a draft area on the worksheets for these types of problems.
File Folder Games Counting Skills
A helpful activity that you can just setup for students and they can work on it independently. They will be matching the amount of things.
Estimating by Counting
We relate estimating and quick counting to help students leap towards that skill. These are great once they have their basics down.
Adding Place Values
This helps students transition to convert values between standard and expanded form. We added this section here because this is the natural progression for students once they have their skip counts down.
6 Ways to Teach Counting
When we want to know the number of objects in any set, we count. Normally we learn this skill in the preschool years. As we progress into Kindergarten, we expand our count lengths. Rote counting is one of the best methods to get these skills going for students. It often comes naturally for most students. You don’t need to spend a great deal of time on each day. A simple count to a fixed number at the start of every morning and just before we go home is enough to get the job done.
Counting has been around for as long as anyone can remember or at least as far as records show. The most primitive forms of civilization used some form of counting. The first evidence we have of counting dates back 20,000 years to a bone found in the Congo region of Africa. On the bone lies a number of etched lines that look like your standard tallies. While it could have just been someone doodling, it most likely was scribed to account for something.
You can start teaching your child counting as early as kindergarten. When teachers introduce arithmetic topics in kindergarten, students tend to develop their cognitive skills. They start developing abilities that can provide a foundation from which the child can draw. These skills can come in handy for them, even in secondary classes.
1. Work in Groups
The simplest way of teaching counting is by working in a group. You can also make two separate teams. Make sure they are either seated or standing directly in front of each other. Instruct them to start counting one by one. One team says one, the other says two, and the counting continues. Don't rely on certain figures, but lay the necessary groundwork. Try it in pairs for a more difficult challenge.
2. Count Items in a Junk Box
You can use dry-erase boards as counters. Make sure each child's dry erase board has a digit written on it. Ask them to identify the numeral and count the number of counters on their board that corresponded to that numeral. Ensure that they are free to remove the number. Jot down a new one on their board. All of the children should work at their own pace. Some kids might be practicing counting from 1 to 5, while others might work on numbers up to 100.
You can use various common toys to teach counting to children between the ages of 3 and 4. To begin with, try fist-sized pop beads, stacking rings, and stuffed animals.
3. Do the Math while Playing an Instrument
There is something about the instrument that piques their interest. Give everyone a musical instrument as a way to get them more involved. As you begin counting, try to play instruments in unison.
4. Use Fruits
If you want to count fruits, you can use clear contact paper to cover a disposable plastic plate and attach dots to it. The number of dots on each plate can vary. Make sure dots on the plate are counted. Say the number out loud. Ask the children to count the amount of fruit they must put on their plates. If fruit counters aren't accessible, you can use any counter in their place.
5. Money-Spinners
Teaching children to count money cannot be overstated, as it is an essential skill for everyday life. Counting by one is a skill that even the youngest students may acquire using pennies or dollar bills. Find something in your house that you can sell and make a simple game.
Teach your children how to count change and set out the exact amount of money to purchase candy. Alternatively,, you can push them to figure out how much money they'd save by paying a larger amount.
6. Dice War
Most people have played the card game Dice War at some point. Instead of playing cards, players in this game variation use dice. You can also use tokens or counters instead of dice. To begin, each player turns, sliding a token towards a teammate across the table. Both players roll the dice together, and whoever gets the higher number gets to keep their own token as well as the token of their opponent. Ties are broken by sliding another token toward the opposing player and rolling again. The person with the most tokens at the end of the game wins.
Final Words
The first step in helping students build a solid foundation in counting fluency is to help them develop their number sense. Counting books and shows for young children abound, but if you want to give your child the best chance of success in math, you must focus on teaching fluency and repetition.