You are going to love these adorable Free Tree Play Dough Number Mats Counting 1 to 10! I love using play dough number mats to practice counting skills. Counting mats for preschoolers are incredibly versatile and are a great way to introduce the skill of counting or to reinforce counting skills with older children. Your child will love practicing counting and decorating the tree with play dough apples, lemons, flowers, leaves, or whatever else their imagination can dream up!
Learning About Counting Mats:
Number Sense with preschoolers
HAVING CHILDREN USE COUNTING MATS CAN PROVIDE EXTRA SUPPORT WITH ONE-TO-ONE CORRESPONDENCE AND NUMBER SENSE. STUDENTS CAN ANSWER QUESTIONS LIKE:
- What does eight of something look like?
- Is two fewer or more than five?
- How do I figure out how many there are if I have 2 and then get 3 more?
By practicing all of these skills in one counting activity, you are also helping build your child’s number sense which will come in handy when they learn more complex math skills like addition and subtraction!
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A full-year of kindergarten math activities: perfect for small groups, partner activities and independent centers.
I love that number mats address so many skills, but it still feels like play for the kids. Such a fun learning activity!
These adorable counting mats can be used with a small group of students, individually in a math center, or as a fun transition before lunch.
One of my favorite things about counting mats 1 – 10 is that they provide practice for so many skills. Here are just a few of the many skills you can practice with this number playdough mats free printable:
- One to one correspondence
- Numeral identification
- Concept of addition
- Using ten frames
- Number recognition
- Reading number words
- Writing numbers 1-10 and number words
- Fine motor skills
Why Is It Important For Kids To Do Use Counting Mats?
Besides the fact that kids love working with their hands there are so many other reasons you should provide counting mat activities for your little learners.
Tools you’ll need
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How To Use These Free Tree Playdough Number Mat
How to Use the Activity
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- Print and laminate the activity for durability.
Using the Free Counting Mat Printable:
Practice reading the number, tracing the number, and building the number with your child.
Rolling out the play dough to form the numbers helps develop the fine-motor skills required for writing, in addition to teaching little ones number formation.
Have them trace the letters with their finger or a dry erase crayon. Then, have them fill in the ten-frame with play dough balls to represent the same number.
Instead of play dough, you could also use math counters, unpeeled stickers (like the foam stickers we used below), game pieces from Hi-Ho-Cherry O games, mini erasers, or small food toys.
We have also used these buttons!
HAIOPS Mini Artificial Apple Fake Fruit Simulation Home Kitchen Party Decor 20PCS (Green and Red)
Apple Erasers (bulk set of 24) School Supplies
Our Favorite Counting Books:
We can’t live without these!
Once your child’s creativity is sparked with this fun activity, take it a step further with these engaging resources:
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Excavator’s 123: Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site (Counting Books for Kids, Learning to Count Books, Goodnight Book)Ten Black DotsOn the Launch Pad: A Counting Book About Rockets (Know Your Numbers)Counting in Hebrew for English Speaking Kids (A Taste of Hebrew for English Speaking Kids) (Volume 2)Lemonade in Winter: A Book About Two Kids Counting Money
More Ways To Use These Free Playdough Number Mats
Adding a Challenge
Extend the activity for older learners and have them use two colors of play dough to create addition problems on the tree and in the ten-frame. 1 apple + 3 apples= 4 apples. This is a great example of how you can use the counting mats for kindergarten students.
Greater or Less Than
Fill out two number mats and discuss greater than/less than. A visual model is wonderful for kids who don’t yet understand why one number is “greater” than another.
Take it Away
Introduce subtraction with these play dough mats. For example, if you are using apples for the manipulative on the math mat, present your child with a problem like “If there are five apples on the tree and two fall off, how many would be left on the tree?”
A Tree For All Seasons
Use these free printable number playdough mats year-round to talk about trees during different seasons. In the spring, you can put ‘flowers’ on the tree as we did. Or, you could turn them into apple counting mats or pick another favorite fruit to use on these counting playdough mats.
In Spanish
Work on additional skills with English language learners with our free printable counting mats Playdough Counting Number Mats.
Play a Game
Continue learning about counting and trees with the free printable number mats Chicka, Chicka, 1 2 3 Counting Mats.
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