Under The Sea Ten Frames Printable

Our school year is almost done, and my PreK students will be moving on to “Big school,” aka kindergarten, in a flash. Before summer starts, I wanted to make sure we are still working on essential skills while savoring our time left together. One way to do that is with super engaging materials and lessons. Under the sea is one of my favorite themes to teach because my students and I all live on an island, so these sea creatures are all quite familiar. Well, maybe not all of them, but this theme is super relatable and a fun way to work on math skills and literacy skills before summer starts. This ten frames printable is perfect for your math center or for a teacher table or activity.

If you are looking for more under the sea themed activities I have a bunch here! 

Wait, I didn’t even ask you if you are familiar with ten frames? If you aren’t, those little grids are useful tools for developing and cementing an understanding of number sense, specifically in relation to ten. In early childhood, we don’t need to teach our students explicitly about place value. Still, activities like these under the sea ten frames printable will help create a strong foundation for that learning later on.

Print them out for just $1.99 here. 

How To Use This Ten Frames Printable

Gather your materials. You will need the printable and some counters. For this one, I am using glass gems, but you can use mini erasers or buttons… whatever you like.

When I introduce a child to a ten-frame activity, we count all ten squares in the frame no matter what number is on the card. Left to right, then sweep down and count the lower row to ten. Modeling the sweep is important because that helps develop the skill used in literacy.

Next, we read the number on the card and count the number we see on the card on our fingers. For these under the sea ten frames printable, we are also counting the images of the sea creatures.

Make sure to connect that number to the frame, saying something like,” We filled three of the ten squares.” then place that same number of gems on the frame, making sure to place them in individual squares. This helps to develop and reinforce the concept of one-to-one correspondence. A skill that is vital not only for math but for reading too.