Here’s the super fun part! As we’ve mentioned, you can count everything all the time with your child – here are some songs, rhymes, and play activities to keep it all going!
Songs*
- Ten Little Fingers
- Zoom, Zoom, Zoom & Happy New Year, Zoom, Zoom, Zoom
- Show Me a One
- Five Green and Speckled Frogs
*Check out Jbrary’s Counting Songs and Rhymes YouTube Playlist
Rhymes
15 Preschool Counting Rhymes
All the words to classic rhymes like One, Two Buckle My Shoe, The Ants Go Marching, Ten in the Bes, and some new rhymes like Five Jellyfish.
Play/Activities
Just “One”
Learning the concept of just “one” is one of the first math concepts introduced to young children – here are some ideas of how to incorporate it into every day.
Counting Caterpillar
This activity helps children set simple goals and see a visual representation of their progress. Ask your child how many times they would like to try a task – as tasks are accomplished they add to their caterpillar.
Count your beans (from KinderCare)
Start with a jar of dried beans and one die. Have your child roll the die a couple times and, after each roll, have them count the number of dots on the die face up. After she counts the dots, ask her to pull the same number of beans from the jar to create a bean pile. Now put, say, five raisins (or other yummy snacks) in a line and tell her you’ll trade her the raisins for the same number of beans. She’ll first count the raisins and then count the beans to be traded. Continue the game, but try to keep the counting manageable and fun by going no higher than 10. The numbers 11 and up are sometimes referred to by preschoolers as “the tricky teens.”
