The Very Hungry Caterpillar Counting Mats
You are going to love these The Very Hungry Caterpillar counting mats! Since the weather started to get better and the butterflies are flying around my daughter is obsessed with butterflies.Her favorite book has become once again The Very Hungry Caterpillar.
"...and then he was a beautiful butterfly" she recites the very hungry caterpillar to me, to her dad and to our dog on daily basis. I've been trying to get her to learn the numbers for a long time without any success.She can count to 10 without any problem but she still doesn't recognize the number symbols.
In an attempt to get her interested I decided to combine two of her favorite things: play dough and The Very Hungry Caterpillar. If you don't already own this book, I highly recommend the finger puppet version of the book.
Play Dough Counting Mats For Toddlers
Our toddler counting activities are always popular and these mats are perfect for working on pre-math skills with toddlers (counting and number recognition). Plus they are a fun way to work on fine motor skills.
Materials
To make your own The Very Hungry Caterpillar counting mats you will need
- Photo paper (I really recommend printing the mats on photo paper to have the best quality of pictures)
- Laminating sheets (so that the playdough doesn't stick to the printables and you can use them more than once)
- Laminator
- Play dough in different colors (I love this set as it's great value for money, or you can make your own using our recipe here)
Instructions
Step 1. Download the free printable.
Step 2. Print the very hungry caterpillar counting mats (I recommend using photo paper)
Step 3. Cut the cards and laminate them.
Time To Play
Once your mats are ready, invite your toddler to make little play dough balls (if you have a young toddler you can help him make the little balls). Making play dough balls will help strengthen your toddler's hand muscles.
With young toddlers sit and count together the balls as you put them on the holes the caterpillar made on the fruits.
My daughter can already count so I was just there to remind her the number symbols.
Other Fun Ways To Play With The Counting Mats
- Don't laminate the mats and invite your little one to use do-a-dot markers to paint on the holes (I recommend the washable do-a-dot markers for obvious reasons!)
- Get buttons in all the colors and use them to fill the holes. It would be a fun color matching practice!
- For older toddlers you can set an invitation to play with pompoms and tongs - these ones are perfect for toddler hands! . This would be not only fun but a great way to work on fine motor skills.
If you have enjoyed this activity, you'll love our collection of other The Very Hungry Caterpillar activities.
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About the Author
Isabel Arango is the owner of Uno Zwei Tutu - a multilingual parenting website full of great toddler and preschool activities, with a hands on Montessori approach. You can follow Isabel on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.
If you enjoyed this activity here are some more that you may enjoy:
ABC Activities for Toddlers
Counting Activities for Toddlers
counting printable playdough mats
