Counting Activity

This is a fun way to get the child active and counting.  Make flashcards that have activities like jumping jacks, clapping your hands, finding states on a map, even math problems.  Have the child roll a die and draw a card from the activity cards.  The number they roll is the number of jumping jacks they do, the number of times they clap their hands, the number of states they have to find on a map, the number of math problems they have to solve correctly.  We've even added in state capitals when we play.  You could even have it be the number of letters/letter sounds they get correct or the number of sentences they have to read... there are so many things you could do with this activity!  This is a favorite in my house!

Domino Letters/Numbers

This one is a bit more... difficult... but if you or your child love to set up dominoes it can be pretty fun.  Just draw a number or ABC card and set the dominoes up to look like the number or letter on the card.  Then watch as they fall over and do it all over again.

Lego Math

Here's a game you can play with Legos.  Roll one die (or draw a number card).  Count out that number of Legos.  Roll another die (or again, draw a number card) and count out that number of Legos.  Then, have your child draw a card or roll a die to find out if they need to add or subtract those numbers.  Have them tell you the answer to the math sentence. This can be done with Legos, sorting dinosaurs, marbles, blocks, pretty much anything you have a large number of around your house.  Use whatever you think your child will enjoy the most!

Lego Numbers and Letters

This idea is pretty basic.  Draw a number or ABC card and have the child make that number or letter with the Legos.  Then ask them to tell you what it is and if it's a letter, what sound it makes.

Greater Than, Less Than, or Equal To

There are two different ways to do this idea:

1) Draw a number card (or roll a die).  Count out that many Legos or dinosaurs.  Then, draw another card and count out that many Legos.  Have the child decide whether the first number is greater than, less than, or equal two the second number and place the appropriate flash card in the middle.

2) Draw a number card.  Count out that many Legos.  Then, draw a card from the greater than, less than, or equal two cards.  Have the child place it next to the pile.  Then, they have to count out a number of Legos that fits the math sentence.  For example: If I draw a 3, I would then count out 3 Legos.  Then I would draw from the greater than, less than, or equal to cards.  Let's say I draw a less than symbol, I would then place that next to the pile of 3 Legos.  Then, I would count out any number greater than 3 and place it next to the symbol card.  Let's say I picked the number 4.  My math sentence would then have 3<4.

Lego Color Sorting

For this you  could use color flashcards, a plain piece of paper that you've colored in, or just a piece of construction paper.  (The Dollar store has packs of construction paper that make this pretty easy.)  The child either rolls a die or draws a number, they then count out that many Legos of that color (again, it could be dinosaurs, blocks, marbles, etc... ) and place them on the paper that matches the color.

ABC Cube

This one is pretty basic, but if your child loves to roll dice, it can be fun.  As you can probably tell, ours has been used a lot.

Just make a cube or use a small box and write the uppercase and lower case letters on it.  You can even do this with numbers.  Have your child roll the die and tell you the letter and sound it makes or the number that it lands on.

Learning to Read Flashcard Game

I created this card game to help my children learn to read.  All you need are magnets, a couple of dice, and flashcards.  It's great for teaching children to count the numbers on dice, recognize numbers, learn to use a grid, and reading!

How to play:

Lay out flashcards in a grid, just like if you were getting ready to play a matching/memory game.  Lay out the numbers along the top and bottom.  Then you or your child roll the dice.  The first die tells you the row and the second die tells you the column.  Your child bnb then reads the word in that row and column.  Then, if they read it correctly, flip the card over for a new word or put another card in that spot. 

To make it harder you can even have them write the word on a white or chalk board or use it in a sentence.

The great part is, you can do this with any kind of flashcards: math, colors, shapes, etc... !

Or, you can get a printable version of it here:

Printable Reading Game For Learning To Read And Elementary Practice (teacherspayteachers.com)

ABC Matching Tree Game

Here is a game that involves colors, matching, and a fun story.  My daughter loves the book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom!  So I created a tree full of upper and lower case letters on the leaves.  We read the book together, then she has to match the leaves in the bag with the leaves on the tree.  To make it "harder" I ask her to tell me the letter and the sound it makes.  Sometimes I ask her to tell me the color of the leaf.  Then, when the tree is all matched, we say, "Chicka chicka boom, boom"  and shake the tree so that all of the leaves fall off.


All you need:
Construction paper
Cardboard or poster board
Marker or pen
Scissors
And of course, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom!  if you want to read it.

Number Matching Tree

This is played the same way as the letter tree, except it involves the numbers 1-20 on the leaves.  Again, we read the "Chicka Chicka Boom.Boom" or a number boom together, then she has to match the leaves in the bag with the leaves on the tree.  Just like with the letters, I sometimes ask her to tell me the color of the leaf when she finds the match.  Then, when the tree is all matched, we say, "Chicka chicka boom, boom"  and shake the tree so that all of the leaves fall off and do it again and again, until she decides she's done.

All you need are:
Construction paper
A pen or marker
Cardboard
Scissors