Apple Number Cards Free Printable

Do you love using free preschool number printables in the classroom? If so, these apple number cards are for you. They’re perfect for preschool, pre-k, and kindergarten students.

The printable apple numbers can be used to teach and practice a wide variety of early math skills, from one-to-one correspondence to number identification. And you can add in a lot of fine motor practice along the way.

Plus, they’re very low-prep. So you can have your students using the printable apples with numbers tomorrow. I think they’re great as part of a kindergarten or preschool apple theme, but you can really integrate them any time of the year.

Related: Number Activities for Preschoolers

I created these apple number cards to go along with a scented apple sensory bin made up of dyed chickpeas. Each year I’ve used the sensory bin, the kids have spent hours exploring and playing.

I’m not even exaggerating . . . hours upon hours! Dyed chickpeas + apple pie spice = magic! So I decided the spicy apple sensory play would be great paired up with printable apple numbers.

Apple Number Cards

Of course, you don’t have to use the apple numbers with the same sensory bin I put together. In fact, you don’t have to use them with a sensory bin at all.

That’s one of the things I love about these number cards – you can use them in so many different ways! Below, I share some ideas to get you started, but I’m sure you and your students will come up with even more ways to use the apple numbers. And be sure to get your own copy at the end of this post.

How to Prep the Apple Number Cards

You don’t need much to get the apple number cards prepped and ready. Here’s what I used (I may get commissions for purchases made through links in this post):

• Printer
• Laminator
• Laminating pouches
• Scissors

And that’s pretty much about it! You don’t even have to laminate the numbers if you’d rather not. But laminating does help the number cards last a lot longer.

You might also want to grab a few additional items to use with the apple number cards:

• Trays
• Bowls
• Kid-Friendly Tweezers
• Dyed chickpeas
• Apple mini erasers
• Pom poms (yellow, green, and red of course)
• Apple table scatter

Once you have your materials situated, it’s just a matter of printing and cutting out the numbered apples. Then laminate all of the cards if that’s your preference.

One-to-One Correspondence with Printable Apple Numbers

My favorite way to use the apple number cards is in conjunction with dyed chickpea “apple” manipulatives, like those we used in our apple sensory bin.

Place a tray out on a table and put a bowl of “tiny apples” on the tray. Then add the printable apple numbers, along with some child tweezers.

Explain to your students that they’ll be helping to pick apples! The apple printable numbers are there to tell them how many apples to pick out of the bowl.

The children can use tweezers or their fingers for this activity. Almost all of my students used the tweezers, simply because the tweezers were out! This gave their fine motor skills a good workout.

Depending on your students’ ages and needs, start with just a few apple number cards at a time. This will help you gauge where your students are in terms of understanding the concept. And it allows you to model and assist as needed.

Once your students understand what to do, you can let them work independently or in small groups with their peers. I had fun watching my students work together as a group. They chose cards one through ten and placed them on the table. One child would call out the number, while others worked together to grab enough apples from the bowl.

As you can see in the pictures, some of the amounts weren’t quite right. If that happens, that’s okay! Encourage the children to go back and check them as needed. They might even work together to help each other with this concept.

In addition to the math and fine motor work, using the apple numbers this way allowed me to assess what each child knew in terms of basic numbers, counting, and pincer grasp. I think you’ll find the same.

More Ways to Use the Apple Number Cards

I’ve got a few more ways you can use the apple numbers with your students! Challenge the children to put the apples in numerical order. Then see if they can arrange the numbers in reverse numerical order. You can use some of the numbers when lining up, too, or as part of a gross motor number game.

Print out multiple copies of the apple number cards and turn them into a matching game. Place some numbers upside-down in a simple grid formation. The children turn two numbers over at a time. if they match, the kids can keep the numbers. Otherwise, the numbers get turned back over. They can alternate playing until there are no more apple numbers left.

Pair the numbered apples with an apple-themed sensory writing tray. The kids can then use the printable numbers as visual cues as they practice number formation.

Use different manipulatives or loose parts to explore one-to-one correspondence like I mentioned above. You don’t have to use apple-themed items – whatever you have on-hand would work well.

How will YOU use the apple number cards? Don’t forget to get your own copy at the bottom of this post.

More Apple Activities for Kids

Here are even more apple ideas to try with your students:

• Apple Graphing
• Preschool Apple Songs
• I See Apples Printable Book
• Apple Play Dough Invitation
• Apple Letters Printable
• Paper Roll Apple Stamps
• Apple Tree Math Game

I think those activities would go along very well with the printable apple number cards! My Apple Theme Pinterest board has even more ideas to check out.

Preschool Apple Resources

Let Preschool Teacher 101 save you a ton of time with fully-developed, done-for-you preschool resources. Be sure to check out The Pack from Preschool Teacher 101, too. It’s a membership for preschool teachers like you. Members get access to our materials for a steeply discounted price.

Get Your Apple Printable Numbers Here

These apple number cards are available to members of Fun-A-Day’s free email community. If you’re already a member, enter your information in the form below. You’ll get the apple printable numbers sent to your inbox (and you won’t be signed up twice).

If you’re not a member and want to join, we’d love to have you. Enter your information in the form, and you’ll get the printable number cards as a welcome gift.

If you can’t see the form, you can access it here.

Originally published September 21, 2014. Post updated to include video and more images.