Materials

Farm Animal Counters

Standard(s)

MELS: Number Sense and Operations- Standard 4.10h

Introduce

To ensure children will be able to count 1-10 items with one count per item by the time they enter kindergarten, have them use animal counters. Today, we are going to use animal counters to help us practice counting. 

Model

Put five different animal counters on the table. Point to each and count them aloud. I have 5 farm animals. (Point to each one as you say them in order.) I have a big cow, a little pig, a little horse, a big duck, and a big pig. Now I’m going to move these 5 animals to different places. Rearrange the counters. Then point to each as you count them aloud. Remind children that the counting sequence is always the same even if the animals are in a different order. I still have 5! No matter what order they are in, I say my numbers in the same order and I still have 5!

Guided Practice

Give each child 5 different animal counters. Guide them in placing 5 items in various orders and counting 1-5 each time. Remind children that we count each animal one time.

Your Turn

Have children use 3-5 animal counters to demonstrate that the order of the counting sequence is always the same regardless of what is counted.