Working with Numbers


Graphics by Whimsy Workshop.

We've been working a whole lot on number sense!  Lots of counting, subitizing, ordering numbers, making numbers, etc...  

Our math program is Engage NY (don't ask me my opinion on THAT!), so we have a whole group lesson each morning that requires using a ton of manipulatives that my students love to lose.  :-)  We worked on building numbers and then figuring out different ways to make that number.  I do all my whole group lessons on the carpet.  We also supplement a LOT with center activities, because I'm sorry, but my Kinders can't sit through a 30 minute whole group lesson without being antsy, and I know they're not getting much out of it at that point.



We also use the problem sets and put them in our math journals.  Unfortunately, there are mistakes in the Engage NY materials and the directions don't always make sense, or the pictures are terrible, so sometimes we have to make our own versions of stuff.  Frustrating.  


One activity we did was a counting book.  The kids really enjoyed this, and it was good to see who was able to finish their counting book correctly and independently.  You can find this version of the counting book in my TPT store.



(I love her colorful stars!)


We played Memory with number cards.  They matched the number to the number of objects on another card. 


We also used my differentiated Number Clip Cards.  Counting a number, counting one more than a number, and counting one less than a number are included.   Plus, using the closepins forces them to strengthen their hands, and they love them!

We have also played lots of number games!  Roll and Color, Roll Count and Color, and Race to Trace are a few that we used.  I found these in various places around the internet, but they were all freebies. I know a few of them came from this freebie from The Moffatt Girls.  






We also did quite a bit of number ordering.  We ordered both pictures with a certain number of objects, as well as just the numbers themselves.


The kids loved being able to cut them out and put them in order, but they really loved being able to color them!  You could also make these into a hat.  (My kids LOVE hats!)  This activity can be found in my Fall Into Kindergarten pack, along with several other number activities.

This Skip Counting Freebie can be found in this post from Reagan Tunstall.  There are 4 different versions available!

We even used cubes to build towers that had "one more" with each consecutive cube.  

And when we finally figured out how to put our numbers in order, we expanded on that skill!

Here we are playing "What's Missing?" with a partner.  We put the number cards in order 0-10, one partner closes their eyes, and their partner hides one of the cards.  They have to figure out which number is missing.  Once they get better at that, we allow them to hide 2 cards.

We also played this with towers of cubes from 1-10.  The student hid a cube tower and the other student had to figure out which tower was missing.  (Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of this.  Sorry!)



We also played "One More, One Fewer" to help reinforce this skill.  The students choose a card and count out that number on the ten frame.  Then they rolled a +/- dice to see if they added a number or took one away.  This game comes from our old math program, Math Investigations 2, but it would be super simple to play in your own classroom!

Bobbing for Apples was a hit as well!  The students chose a number 1-20, and they had to figure out where on the paper that number went and write it down with a pencil.  They had to check to make sure their number was in the right spot on their by counting from the first apple to the number they had and check that it was in the right place.  Some more sophisticated thinkers used the numbers that were already on their paper to figure out where a certain number went.  I am sure this game could be created for different seasons as well, especially now that we are beginning to hit our teen numbers and work on them.



I hope this post helped you with some great math ideas for your Kindergarteners!  We are now doing a brief unit on shapes, so I will hopefully be back with some fun ideas to share about those soon!