Back to School Counting Activities for Preschoolers

Looking for engaging ways to teach your child number recognition? This adorable Back-to-School Counting Activity for Preschoolers goes way beyond flashcards! The colorful themed pictures will draw your students’ attention and have them eager to participate. Meanwhile, you can sit back and watch knowing they are building so many important math skills in one simple activity!

Recommended Grade Level:

Preschool

Kindergarten

Coordinating Activities

Counting Activities for Preschool:

BUILDING NUMBER SENSE with preschoolers

IT’S SO IMPORTANT FOR CHILDREN TO HAVE MULTIPLE OPPORTUNITIES TO SEE AND NAME NUMBERS, COUNT SETS, AND IDENTIFY QUANTITIES IN ORDER FOR THE LEARNING TO STICK.

Early counting and number sense activities give children the background knowledge necessary to understand counting beyond 10. They will draw on it to understand skip counting, addition, subtraction, and more!

I like to incorporate counting into the day as much as possible. How many students are here? How many are absent? Who’s having hot lunch? Cold? Which is greater/less?

Including math vocabulary and concepts into everyday routines helps children understand that we use math all the time, not just when we pull out the counting mats.

Digital activities like this one are so versatile! You can do it as a whole class, in small groups, or even as an independent activity when children are familiar with the format.

In addition to learning number recognition, children in your in-person or virtual classroom will practice a load of other important math skills:

Number recognition on a ten frame
Identifying a set/group of objects as a number
Counting repetition
Recognizing the number sequence
Quantifying objects/subitizing

What Can Preschoolers Learn About Number Identification?

TEACHING NUMBER RECOGNITION TO preschoolers

EARLY LEARNERS WORK THE ENTIRE SCHOOL YEAR ON COUNTING, NUMBER RECOGNITION, QUANTITY, AND MORE.

Free Google Slides activities like this adorable Back-to-School theme activity are a great way to engage your students from Day One!

Each slide is an opportunity for children to interact with numbers in multiple ways:

Identify the numeral
Count to find sets that are equal to the number
Is this number big/small? How do you know?
Trace the number for pre-writing practice

The fun digital activity for students also works fine motor muscles as they click, drag, or place manipulatives on each page.

Counting to 5 on a tablet using a back to school theme counting game.

Practice Counting with Prescholers

Counting preschool activities and number recognition 1 to 10 form a strong foundation for future math understandings. Lots of counting practice leads to effortless counting so young children can easier learn new complex math concepts. Soon, they’ll be conquering digital escape rooms with ease!

Develop Automaticity

Number recognition activities for preschool and kindergarten allow students to become automatic at recognizing numerals, which takes some of the brainwork out as they learn to count and write those same numbers.

Improve Counting Fluency

Frequent practice and counting games take the labor out of counting. Fluency from 1 to 10 makes it easier for students to learn and understand numbers

Enhance Subitizing

Subitizing is being able to quickly recognize a set of objects/dots as a number without counting (think of dice or dominos). This is an important math skill that helps kids develop a strong sense of quantity.

The counting math activities for preschool are available in four convenient options: Google Slides, Seesaw, self-correcting Boom Cards, or printable.

How To Use This Preschool Counting Activity

NUMBER RECOGNITION with preschoolers

SIMPLE COUNTING ACTIVITIES LIKE THIS PACK A HUGE PUNCH! STUDENTS LEARN AND PRACTICE NUMBER RECOGNITION, COUNTING, NUMBER SENSE, AND ONE-TO-ONE CORRESPONDENCE.

Whether you want to print the PDF template or use your Google workspace to assign it digitally, your child or students will gain valuable math skills.

I would recommend completing both the digital and the printable versions! Since they are slightly different, your students will be familiar with the format, but they won’t feel like the content is the same.

If you prefer the hands-on method of teaching and learning without technology, grab some counters or other small manipulatives and ask your child to place one on each picture that matches the number.

Alternatively, you can laminate the pages and use dry/wet-erase markers to mark each set.

Preschool counting worksheets printable free.

Easy Ways to Extend the Activity

Sequencing Cards

Use the pages of the activity as sequencing cards and see if your child can put the pages into the correct numerical order from 1to 10 or backward!

Interactive Bulletin Board

These pages are too cute to keep hidden. Put them on a bulletin board and students can interact with the cards during circle time. Students can work together and support each other for a great team-building experience as they learn numbers.

Play a Game

Slice the pages to separate the character holding the number. Mix them up and place them face down. Lay the mats like a large number line. Students can take turns drawing a number card and matching it with the appropriate mat. Or you can hide the cards for a number scavenger hunt!