Counting Activities for Kids: 15 Fun Ways to Foster Early Number Sense

This collection of 15 creative counting activities for toddlers and preschoolers brings numbers to life through play-based exploration. Designed to spark curiosity and joy, each activity supports early numeracy in a way that feels natural, engaging, and developmentally appropriate.

Read more: What Is Play-based Learning In Child Development?

1. Number Towers

• Preparation: Duplo blocks or stacking cubes, number cards 1–10
• How to play: Invite your child to pick a number card and build a tower using that many blocks. Count aloud together as each block is added. You can compare towers afterward to explore concepts like more, less, or equal.
• Tip: This reinforces one-to-one correspondence and builds early problem-solving confidence.

2. Beads on a Pipe Cleaner

• Preparation: Pipe cleaners, colorful beads, number cards
• How to play: Have your child choose a number and thread that many beads onto the pipe cleaner. Count slowly as each bead goes on, encouraging careful hand-eye coordination. The pipe cleaner can be shaped into circles, hearts, or letters after the counting is done.
• Tip: Great for developing fine motor control while exploring numbers hands-on.

3. Nature Count Walk

• Preparation: Basket or bag
• How to play: Go on a short nature walk together and invite your child to collect items like stones, leaves, or flowers. Once home, lay them out and count them in sets. You can sort them by color, shape, or size for added exploration.
• Tip: Let your child decide what to collect. Personal choice enhances motivation.

4. Dot Marker Counting

• Preparation: Dot markers or stickers, paper, number prompts
• How to play: Give your child a piece of paper and a number prompt (e.g., “5”). They will then use dot markers to stamp the correct number of dots. Encourage them to count as they go and notice patterns or groupings.
• Tip: Use bright colors for extra visual engagement.

5. Bottle Cap Ice Cream Counting

• Preparation: Bottle caps, pompoms, cardboard for cones
• How to play: Place a cardboard cone on the table and ask your child to stack a certain number of pompoms (ice cream scoops) on top using bottle caps as a base. You can role-play ordering different amounts to make it feel like running a pretend ice cream shop.
• Tip: Invite pretend play, ask, “Would you like three scoops or five?”

6. Beads in a Pot

• Preparation: Small beads and a metal pot
• How to play: Drop one bead at a time into the pot while counting aloud. The sound and rhythm add an auditory element to number recognition. Try speeding up, slowing down, or closing your eyes for a sensory twist.
• Tip: Try with eyes closed to focus on sound and rhythm.

7. Monster Eye Counting

• Preparation: Paper monsters, googly eyes, glue
• How to play: Invite your child to create silly monsters using paper and then add googly eyes based on a selected number. As they stick each eye, count together and describe how their monster looks, “This one has six eyes, wow!”
• Tip: Let your child design their own monster, imagination meets numeracy!

Read more: How To Encourage Creativity In A Child

8. Bean Bag Stairs

• Preparation: Bean bag or rolled-up sock
• How to play: Toss the bean bag onto a stair or a flat step, then count the number of steps it takes to go retrieve it. Repeat with different targets and numbers. It’s a great way to add movement to number play.
• Tip: A gentle way to blend movement and counting.

Read more: 20+ Best Physical Activities for Kids

9. Pom Pom Cup Sort

• Preparation: Cups labeled 1–5, tweezers, pom poms
• How to play: Place numbered cups in a row. Your child uses tweezers to place the correct number of pom poms into each cup. Count as you go and talk about how full or empty each cup looks at the end.
• Tip: Supports precision and patience, key skills for early math development.

10. Counting Songs & Finger Rhymes

• Preparation: None
• How to play: Sing a familiar counting song together, like “Five Little Monkeys” or “One, Two, Buckle My Shoe.” Use fingers or toys to act it out. These songs naturally build rhythm, sequencing, and prediction skills.
• Tip: Include hand motions for children who enjoy movement while learning.

11. Snack Sorting

• Preparation: Fruit slices, cereal, crackers
• How to play: During snack time, lay out different items and ask your child to group them in sets. For example, “Can you give me four grapes and three crackers?” Then count together before enjoying the treat.
• Tip: Offer choices to let your child feel in control.

12. Sticker Counting Chart

• Preparation: Chart paper, fun stickers
• How to play: Make a chart with boxes numbered 1 to 10. Invite your child to place the matching number of stickers into each box. Use different sticker shapes or themes for variety.
• Tip: Use stickers your child loves, like animals or stars, for added joy.

13. Toy Clean-Up Count

• Preparation: Toys after play
• How to play: Turn cleanup into a counting moment. Ask your child to collect and count specific toys, “Can you put away six blocks?” It keeps tidying light and playful, while reinforcing number practice.
• Tip: Turns routines into learning opportunities, no extra prep needed.

14. Count & Hop

• Preparation: Floor number mats or chalk numbers outdoors
• How to play: Lay out numbers in a line. Have your child hop from one to the next, saying each number aloud. You can also give challenges like, “Hop to number five!” or “Can you jump from two to six?”
• Tip: Works especially well for high-energy children.

15. Storytime Count

• Preparation: Books with numbers or countable illustrations
• How to play: As you read, pause to count objects on the page together. “How many ducks are there?” or “Can we count all the stars?” It adds interaction and lets your child engage more deeply with the story.

Tip: Pause and invite your child to guess “what comes next.”

Counting activities for kids are more than just early math exercises, they’re playful opportunities to encourage number sense, problem-solving, and everyday curiosity. By turning numbers into interactive games, stories, and routines, children begin to see math as a natural and enjoyable part of their world.

At La Petite Ecole Ho Chi Minh International School, we foster early numeracy through bilingual, hands-on learning that supports each child’s pace and personality. Curious how we encourage a love for numbers and learning? Contact us to explore our child-centered approach.

• Phone: 028 3519 1521
• Email: contact@lpehochiminh.com
• Address: 172 – 180 Nguyen Van Huong, Thao Dien, District 2, Ho Chi Minh city