Go on a Number Hunt!

Send your child on a number hunt to try to discover numbers hidden throughout your house. This is a simple activity to do with your child (or more than one child) to help develop basic math skills build the foundation of her learning for years to come. In this activity, your child will learn to recognize number names and numbers by sight and develop her ordering and grouping skills.

What You Need:

• Cards, books, or pictures that show numbers or number names big enough to be easily recognized by the children (if unavailable, you can draw numbers on a whiteboard or place brightly colored handmade number cards around the house)

What to Do:

1. Before your child enters the room, place numbers and number names all around the room. Hiding some inside tables or on shelves and playing “Hot and Cold” is a fun addition to the game as well.
2. Explain to your child that she is going on a “scavenger hunt” to find number names and numbers all around the house. Note: Children can hunt individually or with other children in teams. Teams usually work quite well for this game.
3. Instruct your child to try find all the cards, pictures, and so on, from 1–10.
4. You can give hints if some of the cards are well hidden.
5. Provide a place where your child can line up her stash of numbers and number names in order.
6. Can she recognize numbers and number names by sight? Can she line up the numbers in chronological order from 1–10?

Variation: Children love to beat the clock, and this game is fun to do within a time limit. It’s also best to use only one set of numbers or number names per team. Or try designating a day of all “ones” or “twos.”  You can even try this game outside too!