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One of my favorite rhymes to teach to young students is “Five Little Ducks”. Whether you recite it as a poem, read it aloud from a book, or sing it as a song, this is a great way to help students practice number sense. In this post, I’m sharing some of my favorite five little ducks activities to use in kindergarten. Your students will love these hands-on and engaging companion activities for “Five Little Ducks”.
There are so many fun companion activities that you can use with the “Five Little Ducks” rhyme. Here are some of my favorites:
Before we dive into all the ways you can practice counting with the five little ducks, let’s talk about retelling! The predictable sequence of this poem makes it perfect for sequencing and retelling practice.
Students can practice this important comprehension skill using small duck pieces on a farm mat. They can move the pieces around the mat as they retell the story of the five little ducks.
As I mentioned above, there are many ways that your students can practice number sense with activities inspired by the five little ducks. Students can practice number recognition, one-to-one correspondence, and number formation with this one easy-to-use activity.
After tracing each number on the left side of the worksheet, students will add the correct number of duck counters to model each number.
Another way for students to practice one-to-one correspondence is with this duck-themed counting activity. Students need to get each duck to the correct barn! They will count the number of squares on each duck, then match it to the barn with the corresponding number.
If students have trouble keeping track of which squares they have counted, you could provide small manipulatives for students to place on the squares. Students could also make a small mark with a crayon or pencil as they count the squares. Either strategy will help students keep track of what they have counted.
Just like the duck counting above, students have a mission to accomplish with this activity. They need to get the five little ducks back together! They will do this by counting on to five. Each line of the worksheet has a number of ducks and the rest of the line is blank. Students will add duck counters to help them count on from that number until they get to five. They are always so excited to see each line fill back up with ducks!
This activity also lays the foundation for future practice with decomposing numbers. With the clear distinction between printed ducks and paper ducks, students can clearly see that the total number of five can be created with different number combinations.
Once students have had plenty of practice with counting using one-to-one correspondence, they can create their own mini-reader! Each page has predictable text using high frequency words that gives students success with reading practice.
There is room on each page for students to identify and trace a number between one and five. They will also glue the correct number of ducks to the barn on each page. Your students will be so excited to take reader home and share with their families!
This is another fun mini book for students to assemble as they practice reading and number sense! This printable book actually comes with three different options to choose from based on the skill you’d like your students to practice the most.
The first option is great for students who need more writing practice. Each page has a number of ducks to count along with a blank line. Students will write a sentence to describe how many ducks they see on the page.
The next option has a blank line in the sentence where the number should go. Students will count the ducks on each page, then write the corresponding number on the line. The final page also has space to cut and paste five ducks to go along with the final sentence. This is great practice for ordering numbers! (This final page is the same for all three book options.)
The final option has the sentence already written for the students. They are able to count and color the ducks on each page. No matter which book option you choose, your students will be so excited to take home their books and read with their families!
The final activity I want to share with you can also be used in different ways. For either option, students will first color the scene and trace the numbers on the page. The first way that students can use this activity is for counting practice. They will lift all of the flaps so the ducks aren’t showing. Then, as they say each number out loud, they can fold down the flap and watch the number of ducks increase as they count.
The other option is to use this flap activity to help students retell and act out the rhyme. As you recite the poem or sing the song as a class, students will lift up one flap each time a duck goes away. No matter which way you choose to use this flap activity, students will be able to develop and strengthen their number sense skills.
All of the five little ducks activities pictured above can be found in one easy-to-download resource. You can add some extra engagement to your math and literacy practice with these themed activities! If you’d like to take a closer look at everything included in this resource, you can find it in the A Spoonful of Learning shop or on TPT.
If you plan to recite, sing, or read “Five Little Ducks” to your students, be sure to save this post! Just add the pin below to your favorite teaching board on Pinterest. You’ll be able to quickly find these five little ducks activities whenever you’re ready to download and print!
These alphabet books will have students dive deep into learning about each letter of the alphabet while eager to see what activity they get to complete next!
