Oh, summertime! How I love it. All that time with my little ones to play, enjoy, and get outside.
Every time we adventure outside, it seems learning takes place. Loads of it! Natural learning, through play-based and child-led adventures, of course—and truly, most importantly.
But summer is a great time to give little ones some practice for academic skills as well. Summertime can give children some one-on-one time with parents and caregivers to ensure they are really understanding foundational skills. Like the foundations in math!
Perhaps your little one was not quite ready to grasp some number learning concepts this year and could use some time to do it at her own pace…
Maybe your little one needs some time to build his confidence with numbers…
Perhaps you simply want to keep them from forgetting some of the skills learned this year…
There are plenty of reasons to do a little bit of playing with numbers this summer. Not to mention the fact that these number games for preschoolers are just plain fun!
Before we get into all of the summertime ideas, did you get your FREE Tangrams Printable yet? This is such a wonderful resource that can be used in so many different ways in the home or classroom. You can grab yours right here:
This printable is part of my preschool program, Play into Kindergarten Readiness. It includes 28 weeks of daily activities to enjoy with your little one, covering all fundamental preschool skills through play! Take a peek right here: https://shop.howweelearn.com/pages/play-into-kindergarten-readiness
20 Summertime Number Games for Preschoolers
Ice Cream Numbers from Fun-A-Day – Use numbered cones and pompom ice cream to explore numbers one through twenty. Add in some tongs for fine motor exploration.
Number Boats from The Elementary Math Maniac – Make and float various number boats outside this summer. They’d work well inside the bathtub too.
Shell Memory Game from No Time for Flash Cards – You just need shells to play this beach-themed number game with the children.
Clownfish Counting Game from Small Potatoes – Numbers and clownfish toys can be set up in a tub inside or a kiddie pool in the backyard. Then little fishermen can fish for numbers and fish to their hearts’ content.
Counting Fun with Ping Pong Balls from Mess for Less – Such a simple number activity, but the novelty of it is sure to entice the kids.
Beach Themed Counting Practice from The Preschool Toolbox – Break out the play dough if a summer storm blows through! Add number cards and tiny starfish to make it ocean-themed.
Simple Water Bead Math from Little Moments – Water beads are a fun sensory experience during the summer! After some hands-on play, add a number sorting tray to work on counting and number recognition.
Number Stones at the Beach from NurtureStore – The kids just need to gather some rocks at the beach to get this activity going.
Pirate Play Dough Number Mats from Life Over C’s – Gather some pirate gold and let little pirates practice their numbers with play dough.
Learning Numbers with Water Balloon Basketball from Mom Inspired Life – Summer is definitely a time to break out the water balloons. Add numbers to them and turn a basketball game into some math fun.
Number Splash from Coffee Cups and Crayons – Water balloons, chalk, and excited kids are all that is needed for this activity!
Seashell Numbers from Rockabye Butterfly (link no longer available) – The kids can make sure each shell has the correct number of pearls. This can be used inside, with a sensory bin, or outside in the sandbox.
Counting Watermelon Seeds from Totschooling – After a delicious summer snack, explore numbers and quantities with watermelon seeds.
Number Practice with Gold Coins from Gift of Curiosity – Children can practice identifying and writing numbers, along with counting like pirates.
Icy Numbers Sensory Play from NurtureStore – These icy numbers can be traced with little fingers, put in order, and melted. Add some counters to the numbers to explore quantities and counting.
Fishing for Numbers from Buggy and Buddy – Set up the water table outside and add numbered fish. Little fishermen can try to catch the numbers with a homemade fishing rod.
Octopus Math File Folder Game from Crayon Freckles – This simple file folder game works on numbers one through eight, but can be adjusted depending on the child.
Sandy Numbers from Pre-K Pages – Kids can stamp out numbers and count out the appropriate number of shells. This activity would work at the beach, in the sandbox, or for an indoor sensory bin.
Pool Noodle Numbers from JDaniel4’s Mom – Pool noodles seem to multiply in the summertime! Grab an extra one, cut it up, and add some numbers. They can be used for counting, number identification, and addition.
Math Fun in the Pool from Toddler Approved – Bring numbers to the pool and keep the learning up while splashing around.
Of course, these number games for preschoolers also help little ones learn that math is FUN!
That is exactly the approach followed in Play into Kindergarten Readiness—the preschool curriculum covers all core preschool skills in 20 minutes of play a day!
Take a peek right here:
https://shop.howweelearn.com/pages/play-into-kindergarten-readiness
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I hope you are having some lovely sunny days, friends. Thank you for reading!
xo
Sarah
awesome ideas…
🙂