Why Jump Right in With Fun First-Day Math Activities?

Math Instruction Deserves Time on The First Day

The first day of school is packed with routines and procedures. Students are often met with literacy activities but how often are first-day math activities included in the schedule? Over the years I have noticed that many elementary educators feel more comfortable teaching literacy over mathematics. I frequently hear stories of math being skipped for various reasons. Shortening other blocks and adjusting the schedule for that day would allow for math instruction to still take place, even if shorter. Add to that the fact that many parents feel math is less useful than reading, according to a 2017 survey, and you can see why it’s important to spark students’ interest in math on the first day. (If you’d like to read more, read Do Parents See Math as ‘Less Useful’ Than Reading?)

The Impact of Remote Learning on Math Achievement

The data from the 2020-2021 school year, during which many schools in the United States were using a remote or hybrid instructional model, show that math achievement did not fare as well as reading achievement. Teachers and parents could easily tell students to read during that time. It’s less likely that a parent would tell their child to go do a math problem or even practice facts. Additionally, much of elementary mathematics instruction benefits from the use of manipulatives. The lack of hands-on manipulatives added to the challenge of teaching math virtually. In 2007,

The Importance of Early Math Skills

Greg Duncan found that early math skills are one of the best predictors of future academic success, better than literacy skills or behaviors. (If you’d like to read more, read Early Math Matters: Top Researcher Discusses his Work.) While incoming kindergarteners may not have been impacted by virtual learning, we can still make sure we get them off on the right foot by ensuring we give the same attention and importance to mathematics as literacy. Here are some first-day math activities to help get you started!

Explore the Classroom with a First Day Math Scavenger Hunt.

Let your students explore their new classroom with a number scavenger hunt! Instead of looking for specific items, they will be looking for a specific quantity. First, give each student a different number. If students are seated in groups or at tables, you could assign one number for each group. This minimal prep activity will require number cards or cards with numbers and objects on them. Counter cards will allow students to match objects if they need some support with counting. Make your own or use these printable counter cards. Give each student or group one or more numbers to search for, probably no more than three. Explain that students will have to find the number of objects on their cards. They should all be the same object. For example, if a student has a card with the number four, they could bring back four connecting cubes. Similarly, a student with the number six might bring back 6 glue sticks. Determine ahead of time how high you want to go, five is probably manageable for little hands and early counters. You will want to make sure you clearly describe the areas of your classroom that are in play and out of bounds. This is also a great time to introduce putting things away in the proper places!

Two glues sticks on a card marked with the number 2 and 4 connecting cubes on a card marked with the number 4 are part of a classroom counting scavenger hunt first day math activity..
Let your students explore their new classroom with a counting scavenger hunt.

Read One is a Snail Ten is a Crab and Make a Number Line

Begin by reading One is a Snail Ten is a Crab by April Pulley Sayre and Jeff Sayre. Next, children will create a number line for one through ten for this activity, starting with a snail and ending with a crab. Students can draw their own pictures or you can grab this free Counting Feet Number Line set for them to color.  Students can then write or trace each number on the appropriate picture from the story. Then, students cut out and glue the pictures onto a strip of paper. I cut 9” x 12” sheets of construction paper lengthwise and taped three strips together to make one long strip. Adjust if you are using larger paper or you could even use sentence strips. If you want to create one class number line, have students work in pairs to color larger copies of each picture. When finished, work together as a class to put them in order. One is a Snail Ten is a Crab is a great book to revisit later in the year when counting by tens and when composing numbers. You can present children with a number and have them find all the ways they could make that number. For example, in the book, nine is a spider and a snail but it could also be two dogs and a snail or an insect, a person, and a snail.

A picture number line math activity with a picture of the cover of One is a Snail Ten is a Crab by April Pulley Sayre and Jeff Sayre.
Make a visual number line.

Read Circle and Make a Fun First Day Math Activity

Many students come to kindergarten knowing some basic shapes like circles, squares, and triangles. Read Circle by Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen. When finished, ask children to close their eyes and imagine the shape that they think was in the cave with Circle and Triangle. Introduce turn-and-talk (think-pair-share) as one of the routines you’ll be using to share ideas during math class. Next, have children turn to a partner and share the shape that they saw when they closed their eyes.  Choose students to share their shapes with the rest of the class. Provide a cave traced on construction paper and shape cut-outs for students to create a picture of the shape they imagined in the cave in the story. Include a variety of shapes even if they were not named by students. Seeing other shapes may give them ideas they didn’t think about. Finally, a sentence to be filled in with the student’s chosen shape, e.g. “I think the shape in the cave was a ________” will complete the picture. If your students enjoyed this story, be sure to check out Barnett’s and Klassen’s other books, Triangle and Square. 

A picture of a black cave cut from construction paper with a vertical orange rectangle with eyes and three other paper rectangles glued on. Included with this math activity is a picture of the cover of the book Circle by Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen and a  sentence that reads, "I think that the shape in the cave is a rectangle."
Students visualize shapes with this literature-based math activity.

Icebreaker First Day Math Activity

Show students that numbers have meaning while letting them use their artistic skills to share a little about their likes and dislikes. Ask students to share what they know about numbers. Discuss with them that we use numbers to describe “how many.” This simple activity only requires drawing paper and crayons or markers. Fold the drawing paper in half. You may find it helpful to keep it folded so that only one side can be drawn on until you are ready to go on to the other. Either assign each child a number or let them roll a die. They will use the same number for both pictures. First, have each child draw a picture of something they wish they had. For example, if the number was 5, the child might say they wish they had five horses. On the other side of the paper, have children draw to show something they would not want, e.g. I do not wish I had 5 skunks, rotten apples, etc. You may wish to write a sentence on each half of the paper, either with a preassigned number or a blank if you choose to use a die and a blank for the child’s item ahead of time. Once children have completed their drawings, allow them to share. Students will certainly make some connections as they get excited about the things their new classmates wish they had and grimace about the things they didn’t.  

A first day icebreaker math picture with five simple brown line drawings of horses with text that reads "I wish I had 5 horses" on one side. On the other side, there are 5 simple line drawings of burnt toast with text that reads, "I do not wish to have 5 pieces of burnt toast."
Let students share a little about their likes and dislikes with classmates with this first-day activity.

Get to Know Me Banner Math Activity

Getting to Know You activities are traditional first day of school activities. This one includes numbers and lets kids see just how present they are in their lives. You will need two sheets of paper, crayons or markers, scissors, and a piece of string or yarn about 42 inches long for each student. Ahead of time, fold each piece of paper in half and make a mark at the halfway point on one of what are now the shorter sides. Draw lines from each corner of the other shorter side to the mark to form a triangle. Cut on the lines to create two triangles from each sheet of paper. (The printables below include triangles.) Each pennant will complete one of the following statements:

  • I am ____ years old. (Students might draw a cake with the correct number of candles or a hand showing the correct number of fingers.)
  • I have _____ letters in my first name. (Students can write their name.)
  • My favorite number is ________. (Students can write the number or draw a picture representing that number of objects, e.g. 3 flowers.)
  • I have ______ pet(s). (Students can draw their pets.)

After students have completed their drawings, they can complete the sentences to glue to the top of each pennant. Finally, students should cut out, if not already pre-cut, and glue at the top of the correct pennant. Use tape to string together the four triangles about an inch apart. Include a heading, such as All About __________ or Get to Know _________ if desired. You can get Get to Know Me Banner printables here.

For this first day math activity, four pennant banners are strung together, each showing something about a student. One with a drawing of a flower and the name Michele says, "I have 7 letters in my name." The second, with a drawing of a dog, says "I have 1 pet." The third shows a cake with 5 candles and says "I am 5 years old." The fourth says "my favorite number is 3," and shows the number 3 written.
Students can share some important numbers about themselves with this Get-to-Know-Me-Banner.

Using First Day Math Activities to Develop Mathematicians

I hope these first-day math activities help get your school year off to a great start by showing your students that math is important. It’s worth time on the schedule on the first day. Strive to make math engaging and meaningful for your students. Help them build a growth mindset and think of themselves as mathematicians.

A young child smiles in a classroom setting feeling like a mathematician.
Help students see mathematics as important and believe that they can succeed with first-day math activities.

You May Also Be Interested In…

From Just Playing with Numbers

Read-Alouds to Support the Counting Stages and a Google Slides Freebie

From Around the Web

30+ Fun Fall Math Worksheets to Increase Basic Math Fluency Success

5 Powerful Ideas to Help Students Develop a Growth Mindset in Mathematics

What are Number Talks and Why are they Useful in the Primary Classroom?

3 Easy Tips for Awesome Math Talks in the Primary Classroom

If you’d like to learn how to write a blog, check out

7 Helpful Tips on How to Blog Like a Boss