Number Recognition Games for Kids

Two weeks ago, Nige and I went to the girls school for parents evening. It was great to hear all about how the girls are doing. 

They struggled to settle in at first, but they seem to be doing well now, which is great news. One of the teachers mentioned that we could work together with the girls on their number recognition.

Both girls are really good at counting. In fact they can both count up to 30, but at times they can muddle up their numbers when they look at them written down.

As such, I’ve been working with them both to improve upon this and I thought I’d share our number recognition games with you.

The first is my favourite because I believe it’s the most effective. I bought some number flash cards from Amazon. They cost a little over £2. They’re double sided and go from 1 all the way up to 100.

The thing I love about cards is that there are so many ways you can play.

I’ve found that card games are something our girls really enjoy. This is why I thought these games would be both fun and engaging.

The first game we play with the cards uses the 1 – 10 number cards.

I line them all up in the wrong order and then ask the girls one at a time to put them into the right order.

This game is great because it’s making them think about what number goes where, but it’s also helping them to recognise the numbers and teaching them about turn taking too.

Once both the girls have had a go, we then move onto the next game.

We leave the number cards 1-10 in the correct order, but then I ask the girls to turn their backs on me whilst I take one or two cards away.

The girls then need to figure out which cards are missing. Again reinforcing number recognition and counting skills.

Of course we also play snap with these cards based on the colours around the numbers!

The next game I bought is Orchard Toys Match and Count. 

This puzzle game includes the numbers 1-20. Children can count the items in each picture and then find the same number to join the correct pieces together. 

I kinda wish the pieces weren’t the same colour as it gives the game away a little, but with adult participation I can make sure the girls are counting the items correctly and not just going off the matching colour piece!

We also use Lego to create a number recognition game. I write down the numbers 1-10 on individual pieces of paper and then place all 10 pieces of paper face down.

The girls take it in turns to pick up a piece of paper. They need to tell me what number is written down and then count out the correct number of Lego blocks and place them onto the piece of paper with the matching number on.

I have ordered another game online for our girls for Christmas to help with their number recognition. This is the Orchard Toys Caterpillar Counting Game. As you can probably tell, I’m a big Orchard Toys fan!

By playing these games on a regular basis with the girls, I’m sure they’ll be a whizz with numbers!