Fun and Easy Monster Counting Activity for the Kids

You need to try this slime monster counting activity with the kids. It’s easy to set up and a fun way to explore counting and one-to-one correspondence.

Preschoolers like to count. It’s one of the ways they can explore and categorize the world around them.

Counting is also a critical early math skill, so it’s important to encourage and teach counting throughout a preschooler’s day.

To keep things interesting and at a young child’s level, counting should definitely be fun and hands-on. Use these printable monster number cards to get the kids counting and learning one-to-one correspondence. Toss in some sensory play and you’re good to go.

How to Set Up the Monster Counting Activity

There are a few different ways to go about putting this monster number activity together. I’ll share what we did, along with a few different ideas you could try.

Prepping the monster counting invitation

We started off with our glitter monster slime. Whenever possible, I like reusing materials for multiple activities. We already had some of the slime separated into sensory bags. So we just removed the googly eyes and resealed the bags.

Fresh googly eyes were a must for our monster counting, of course. We also used a black permanent marker and our monster number cards from our monster lesson plans.

You can grab a free printable version of the number cards at the bottom of the post (click on the orange button that says “Click Here to Get Your Free Monster Number Cards”). Doing so means you agree to my terms of use.

Since we had the slime monster sensory bags done already, it didn’t take long to set all of this up. I drew super simple smiles on the slime bags and grabbed some googly eyes. I’d already cut and laminated the monster number cards, so they were added in easily.

What we did with our slime monsters

The slime monster sensory bags were turned into slime monsters waiting for their eyes. We put the number cards all in one pile and then got started with the top number.

We counted out the correct amount of googly eyes and added them to slime monster face. From there, we went back and counted to make sure we’d added the right number of eyes. Then it was on to the next card.

What do kids learn from this counting activity?

As with all early childhood activities, there are many learning opportunities here. Of course, counting and one-to-one correspondence are practiced with the slime monster counting.

In addition to that, kids are working on number identification. They can look at the number on each card and identify it, or they can receive some adult or peer help to do so.

Fine motor and sensory skills are also involved here. The slime is fun to manipulate with little fingers, and it’s got a unique feel to it. Picking up the small googly eyes and adding them to the monster bags works kids’ pincer grasps along the way, too.

Colors and sorting can come into play here, as well. We used green, blue, and purple monster baggies since we already had them on-hand. However, it would be great to make a different color for each of the monsters on the number cards. Then the kids could sort the cards based on their colors before starting the counting activity.

Alternative Ideas for Using the Monster Number Cards

As I mentioned above, I like reusing materials whenever possible. The monster number cards don’t have to be used just for counting eyes for slime monsters.

A slightly different monster counting activity

We set up a different hands-on, multi-sensory counting activity with the number cards once we were done with the slime monsters. I grabbed some black beans leftover from making sensory bottles a while back and put them into a little wooden tray. The wooden tray is from a lacing card set I got at the Target Dollar Spot a while back – kind of like these lacing cards.

The monster numbers slotted in perfectly along the top of the tray, with the beans in the larger area. We pretended the black beans were where silly monsters were hiding under the bed. Googly eyes were added based on the number cards, just like the slime monster bags. We also wrote the numbers in the black beans to practice number writing.

Even more ideas for those number cards

Use the cards for calendar numbers during a monster theme.
Make different sensory bags for the monster faces.
Work on numerical order, placing them in a long line from 0 to 35.
Sort the cards based on the monsters’ colors.
Make patterns based on the colors of the monsters on the cards.
Print out more than one set and work on building larger numbers.
Add them to a silly monster math game.

More Monster-Themed Activities You Should Check Out

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT:

Feed the Monster Alphabet Match // Sara J Creations

Monster Alphabet Playdough Mats // Modern Preschool

Counting Cards // Miss Kindergarten

Monster Math Addition Clip Cards // The Kindergarten Connection

Counting Mats // The STEM Laboratory

Monster Measurement Cards // Fairy Poppins

Monster Alphabet Game // Stay at Home Educator

Felt Monsters Busy Box // Teach Me Mommy

Letter Match // Schooling a Monkey

Monster Snowball Coverall // Recipe for Teaching

Snow Monster Addition Puzzles // The Simplified Classroom

Monster Shape Graphs // Playdough to Plato

Slime Monster Counting Activity // Fun-A-Day

Name the Monster Phonics Game // Play & Learn Every Day

Monster Counting Emergent Reader // A Dab of Glue Will Do

Color Monsters Write the Room // Letters of Literacy

Monster Truck Numbers: Bigger and Smaller // Liz’s Early Learning Spot

Creation Tray // Powerful Mothering

Monster Feelings Match Up // Pocket of Preschool

Get Your Monster Number Cards

These cards are for members of Fun-A-Day’s email community. Click on the button below to join the email list (and receive the monster number cards as a free gift). These emails will be chock full of early childhood education resources, activities, tips, and even more freebies!

Preschool Monster Lesson Plans

Save time and get right to the playful learning with our printable lesson plan sets. Each set includes over 30 learning activities related to the theme, and we’ve provided different versions for classroom teachers and home preschool families so all activities are geared directly toward your needs.