Fall Counting Activities for Preschoolers

As you begin working with your little ones on number recognition and other math skills, these Fall Counting Activities for Preschoolers are a fun way to blend a Fall theme with learning. Each of these ideas uses some combination of the five senses to ensure that you are touching on all of the different learning styles as you work your way through this list.

Fall Counting Activities Outside

Getting your preschool students outside is helpful on so many levels. Not only are you exposing your child to sunshine for some natural vitamin D and fresh air, but you are also challenging their gross motor skills, getting them away from screens, and showing them how to enjoy the great outdoors. As an adult, time spent outdoors has been shown to improve mental health and clarity, so it is a good habit to encourage from a young age. 

The treasures you can find outside to practice counting are numerous, almost infinite! You don’t have to just focus on counting though, you can do all kinds of Fall math activities once you are outside and moving. Pick and choose from this list. 

Stick Stack. Collect and build a tower out of sticks. First, break all of the sticks to a similar size. As you place each stick, count the stick and keep track. Next, place the base layer in the shape of a triangle. Then make a second triangle on top of the first but at a half rotation so that it looks like a star. Continue rotating and stacking triangles for as long as your child is interested, counting as you go. If your child can only count to three, just count each layer. Work with your child on his or her level. 

Rock Rows. Rows of items are fabulous to help kids’ brains organize objects in mathematical ways. You don’t even have to talk about the mathematical organization happening for kids to start building neural pathways related to numbers. Make short rows of rocks and count each row as you create it. You can start with two, three, or four rocks. Show your child how two rows of two rocks each make four rocks and so on.

Leaf Patterns. Turns out patterns are a great way to practice counting small numbers while also working on sequencing and patterning skills, prediction, and thinking skills.  Start by gathering different types of leaves and sorting them into small containers or piles. Next, Create a small pattern and show it to your child. This could be as simple as two leaves of one type and one leaf of a second type. Then ask your child to count and recreate what he or she sees. Keep making different patterns until your child gets tired of the activity or the patterns are getting too complicated. 

Fall Counting Activities Indoors

On rainy days or days when you need to be indoors, try these activities to work on your child’s fine motor skills, problem-solving, and all kinds of math skills. These are all foundational skills that will help young children be ready for kindergarten.

Sticker Sorting. Find a set of Fall stickers and cut them apart. Place all of the stickers in a container mixed together. Have your child create rows of stickers sorted by the image. Count together how many you have of each sticker. 

Cool Weather Clothing Count. It’s the time of year when you need to know how many long sleeve shirts, hoodies, and long pants fit your child anyway so it’s a perfect time to count clothes with your child! Gather up the cold weather clothing from older siblings or your child’s drawers and count it out by type. If applicable make a shopping or gathering list based on how much is needed to fill gaps. 

Candy Graphing. Print off some graph paper and sort Fall candy according to type. Count how many you have of each type, and compare by asking your child questions. Do you have more of this candy or this candy? Which candy do you have the most? Which candy pile is the smallest? Are any candy stacks equal? 

Use Our Fall Counting Book. We have an adorable Gnome counting book perfect for teaching number recognition, one-to-one correspondence, number recognition, number words, ten-frames, and more. You can use this book with small leaf stickers or mini erasers on the counting worksheets in an exciting visual way. 

Pumpkin Seeds Race. Make a math game out of pumpkin seeds. Play a short piece of music about the Fall Season and see how many pumpkin seeds your child can count before the music stops. You may need someone else to start and stop the music so that you can help with counting. This exercise is perfect for little hands building the pincher grip. It’s also a form of satisfying sensory play! After you are finished, make a little sensory bin filled with pumpkin seeds for little dump trucks and diggers or just some kitchen scoops. You can also roast and eat the pumpkin seeds for a delicious Fall-themed snack.

More Ways to Practice Preschool Math Skills

We have so many great free resources for you that will help your preschooler improve number sense and more all throughout the Fall!

Fall Scavenger Hunt. Turn it into a Fall counting game! Count the objects you find, and work in teams if you can to make it a little competitive.

15 Easy, Inexpensive, and Kid-Friendly Fall Craft Ideas. Count your supplies and have fun being creative!

Jump Into Fall Coloring Activities. Coloring pages are great fine motor skills and more!

Jump into Fall Tot PreK-K Pack. These packs cover so many important skills and have great math activities including number cards.

Jump Into Fall Emergent Readers. If your child is ready for emergent readers these are perfect!

Download your Fall Gnomes Preschool Counting Book

Our counting book features adorable fall themed gnomes and all things counting and numbers, to commemorate this autumn season. Your child will learn to count to twenty, recognize numbers and number words to twenty, practice one-to-one correspondence, complete ten-square activities, and more!

To download the Fall Gnomes Counting Book, simply add it to your cart and then checkout. **Upon checkout, you will be added to my Weekly Newsletter list.**