Discover 15 creative, cross-curricular activities designed to make EYFS counting practice fun, engaging, and meaningful.
Author
Mhairi Sim
Published:
March 2026
Key takeaways
Table of contents
Counting is one of the earliest and most important maths skills that your child will develop in the Early Years Foundation (EYFS) stage. While counting is introduced in maths lessons, it certainly doesn’t need to stay there – in fact, I’d argue that often the best learning happens when maths appears naturally across different subjects.
Cross-curricular activities allow kids to practice counting while they explore art, science, PE, music and outdoor learning. This approach makes everyday maths like counting visible to our little learners and shows them its importance beyond worksheets.
Below are 15 cross-curricular counting activities EYFS students love to get stuck in as they build those all-important counting skills. These counting activities make maths fun, and have been approved not only by my previous students, but also by my own little learners at home!
Set up a “potion station” using cups, water, spoons, leaves, glitter, coloured rice, and maybe some coloured water too. Your little ones can pretend they’re mixing up some magical potions while they follow your counting instructions.
An example potion recipe could be:
This counting activity combines maths with creative play and encourages learners to practice counting and measuring while having fun! You can either read instructions out to your learners to build listening skills, or print off potion recipes if you’d like to build in some number recognition.
Fill a box or tray with rice, sand or shredded paper and hide small toys inside. To build maths into this activity, give each child a challenge to rescue a certain number of toys. For example, four dinosaurs, or three animals. As they discover the toys, they must count them aloud as they get them to the safety of their ‘rescue basket’!
This one is a great warm-up game for PE – all you’ll need is a balloon! Your kids have to keep the balloon in the air for as long as possible and count each tap they give it.
The kids could work together as a class, or in groups, or work individually, depending on how many balloons you have. Not only is this a great counting activity, but it also builds their hand-eye coordination and spatial awareness!
On a sunny day, take your little ones outside with their objects and let them count and discuss all the different shadows they can see. Alternatively, use a lamp or torch inside to shine on some toys or classroom materials and let kiddos count the shadows.
Here’s another great counting activity to build into your next PE session to combine counting practice with building motor skills! Set up a simple obstacle course with different stations around the hall or playground. At each station, teams of children should complete a counting challenge and sit down once everyone is finished and ready to move on.
Some stations I’ve set up in the past included:
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Give each student a bag containing a handful of objects and challenge them to estimate how many are inside just by feeling or shaking. Next, have them empty their bags and count and share their answers with the class.
In the discussions afterwards, you can ask questions that build their maths language and reasoning skills, such as:
This activity has always been a hit with my classes, from EYFS right through to Year 6! Start by having your learners draw a circle on a piece of paper. Next, they have to roll a die to decide how many of each body part their monsters are to have!
Start with heads, then add eyes, arms, legs, wings, teeth…anything! The only rule is that the dice decides how many of each get added!
Take your EYFS learners on a walk around the school grounds or a nearby outdoor space and give them simple challenges, such as finding four sticks or 3 stones to place in their baskets or bags. As your learners collect, they’ll be practising their counting skills, and then you can count again back in the classroom to check their work!
Lay out some snack foods and give your kids instructions to create their stick. For example, you could ask them to make their stick using three banana slices, two grapes, and one strawberry, or you could say there must be six pieces of fruit and leave the rest up to them. At the end, they’ll have practised their counting skills and have a tasty snack to enjoy after all their hard work!
Sometimes songs and rhymes are the most effective way to reinforce counting practice for our little learners. My own son is in reception, and he loves these counting songs and rhymes from Super Simple Songs!
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Story time is a fantastic opportunity to practice counting. While there are stories specifically for counting, there are plenty of opportunities in any picture books you have at home! While reading, pause and ask questions like: “How many apples are on that tree? or “How many wheels can you see on the car?”
My classes all love this fun counting activity, as it adds a little bit of fun when we’re moving around the school. Command your little robots as you move from your classroom to the playground with instructions such as:
Not only will it get them counting, but they’ll also need to use those listening ears to hear the next robo-command!
At music time, play a short rhythm, counting the taps as you play and challenge your kids to use drums or shakers to copy a rhythm back to you. This activity will help them make the connection between counting and rhythm – an important concept as they develop their musicality!
| Roll | Action |
|---|---|
| 1 | 👏Clap |
| 2 | 🦘Jump |
| 3 | 🪱Wiggle |
| 4 | 🌀Spin |
| 5 | 🦶Stomp |
| 6 | 🐇Hop |
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Lesson credits
Mhairi Sim
Mhairi is an experienced teacher, freelance writer and parent. After completing her bachelor's degree in Psychology, she graduated as a teacher from the University of Strathclyde. She then built experience teaching across KS1 and KS2 throughout the UK. In addition to working in mainstream education, Mhairi specialised in the additional support needs sector, including social, emotional, and behavioural support.
Mhairi
Mhairi is an experienced teacher, freelance writer and parent. After completing her bachelor's degree in Psychology, she graduated as a teacher from the University of Strathclyde. She then built experience teaching across KS1 and KS2 throughout the UK. In addition to working in mainstream education, Mhairi specialised in the additional support needs sector, including social, emotional, and behavioural support.
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