What to do with this activity?
Children learn about numbers in a natural way through play. They will enjoy hearing you count out loud as you go about every day activities. Here are things you can count at home or out and about.
Feeding time:
Count as you do things - putting spoons of food onto a plate, laying out cutlery or bowls, for example.
Outside:
Count in the park or playground, for example one doggie, two doggies, or one swing, two swings. Count going up and down steps.
Shopping:
When putting shopping away, count the number of tins, cartons or packets.
Bath time:
Use bath time as a good opportunity for pouring and emptying games with containers. For example, count how many cups of water fit in the jug.
Bedtime:
Count characters or animals in a picture book. Close your eyes and count how many seconds it takes them to jump into bed and snuggle down.
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Why am I doing this?
Children learn about numbers in a natural way through play and by counting real things in their everyday lives. The repetition of numbers in a fun way helps children remember the sequence of 1, 2, 3. Movement and rhymes also make it easier for a child to remember sounds – that’s why nursery rhymes are so great.
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How can I do more?
When out shopping, count food items with your child as you put them into your trolley. If you’re saying a nursery rhyme why not shake a plastic bottle filled with rice or small stones to the rhythm to make more noise.
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