This is a math activity with gross motor and some writing on a vertical surface which is great for beginning writers because it forces the correct wrist position and strengthens the muscles in the hand and arm. Preschool math activities like this help bring math to life by using the world around the children to use as manipulatives.
This post contains affiliate links.
- Gather your materials. You will need some paper ( I get this craft paper in the mailing supply section of Walmart, way cheaper than real butcher paper), markers and something to put the paper on the wall. I use painter’s tape, and I use a lot, so my toddler doesn’t pick it off.
- Draw a house.
- Decide what things you want to count and write them on. I made the windows and doors spots to write the numbers in.
- Invite your counter to read the questions on the poster.
- Start counting around the house!
- Come back and fill in the answers.
- I wish I had a magic wand for my son to make him believe in his ability to write, to know that he doesn’t have to be perfect and to understand that just because reading is easy doesn’t mean that writing should be or that there is anything wrong because it’s hard. So instead we are doing lots of fun writing… and hoping we turn the corner gently on his terms if possible.
He likes to “split the work” so I made sure we were counting some things with two digits, I’d do one or make dots for him, and he’d do the other. I don’t think it’s worth it to push to frustration, instead of finding ways to make him willing is more my style. 
- Search your house poster to see which question has the biggest number and which is the smallest.
Books for Counting Around The House Activities
On the Launch Pad: A Counting Book About Rockets
1, 2, Buckle My Shoe
How Much, How Many, How Far, How Heavy, How Long, How Tall Is 1000?
Sylvie Créative says
I love your amazing ideas!
anonymous says
Another great idea, thanks! My son also resisted writing for quite awhile. Although he is getting better and less reluctant, I’m still always on the lookout for ways to sneak in some writing practice or other fine motor activities. One small activity that got my son writing just a tiny bit on a daily basis was having him mark off each day on the calendar. I found these free printable super hero calendars online. http://www.dltk-cards.com/calendar/heroes/ This has also helped him with number recognition for numbers larger than 10 and he enjoys counting the days until special events such as his birthday, Halloween, etc..
admin says
Merci Sylvie!
Jane- thank you that is a great daily activity that is short but consistent!
Georgine says
My biggest chlallenge is not to push. My daughter actualy writes well and can read, but because she is a perfectionist, she is reluctant. Her Montessori teacher tells me my daughter does her practicing at school and that is enough. If I push, she’ll never like it. Still, I want her to love to write and read (as opposed to being read to). Such a delicate line between encouraging and pushing. Thanks for the idea!
sara says
Another way for your kids to practice writing on vertical surfaces is to give them dry erase markers. Dry erase markers will wipe off glass. Have them write on mirrors, windows, or sliding glass door (as we do.) My kids love this and it saves on the amount of paper we use. I use our door to write down assignments for the day which they erase as they complete them. I also will write a phonics rule (such as oa) and all the words that go with it (boat, goat, moan). My daughter loves to erase them as she reads them correctly so she can see how much longer our phonics lesson is.
Natalie says
What a great activity. I really love your blog!
nikki says
My 3y/o loves to write on foam letters with a pen. The texture is fun for him and the pen shows up very well – using foam letters means that the “shape” is already there and he’s just writing on top of it.
Beth says
This is AWESOME!! I LOVE it! How clever& creative! I am totally using this & going to share it on facebook!! I would really love it if you would link this up at my TGIF Linky Party – http://livinglifeintentionally.blogspot.com/search/label/Linkey%20Parties
I’ll be back Sunday to link up here too =-)
Heather says
I ran across this post today and it spoke to me because I can identify with #7. You put how I was feeling into words perfectly. Recently my own son has become frustrated when he writes letters and he never used to, he would just happily write what he saw around him. Now he wants his letters to look exactly like my handwriting. I even tried showing him some old drawings of mine my mother had saved with beginnings of my own writing on it. I love this activity!
admin says
I am so glad I am not alone. My son likes writing more now but drawing is still a struggle because he has such high expectations. So much comes so easily to him at school but not this so he tends to shut down. It’s a challenge that we are working on.
Anna says
Thanks for this great idea! I posted about it here.
http://www.themeasuredmom.com/letter-h-math/
Dee says
I pinned this awhile back, and we did it today. I just wanted to say that my son is the SAME way with writing. He can read and even do simple math, but he hates writing. It took me awhile to figure out that he thinks it should be perfect, so he doesn’t even want to try! He’s only 4.5, so I haven’t pushed him so far. Good to read about your approach.
paige says
how long does this take
Allison McDonald says
5-20 minutes depending on the kiddo!
John says
nice article https://gas2.org/2014/09/06/motoped-launches-off-road-moped/
NicolWhite says
It is great to do counting’s in everything possible as it really saves time later to count all the stuff .But u need to have motivation for it . So u can earn more https://essays-writers.com/best-motivation-letter-service.html