Spring is a wonderful time to build early math skills—especially when counting practice feels like play.

With baby ducks waddling to the pond and speckled frogs hopping onto a log, preschoolers stay engaged while working on big foundational concepts like one-to-one correspondence, numeral recognition, and simple adding.

The two spring-themed lesson plans below pair familiar songs with hands-on activities to make counting to 10 fun, active, and easy to use in your classroom or at home.

Water is one of the simplest ways to get Pre-K students engaged in real science thinking. In this sink-or-float challenge, students test everyday objects in a tub of water and sort what they observe into two clear categories: sink or float.

The structure is predictable and repeatable—students make a quick prediction, run a test, then talk about what happened—so they can focus on noticing patterns instead of trying to remember complicated directions.

It also naturally builds early vocabulary (heavy/light, top/bottom, wet/dry) and supports key classroom skills like taking turns, waiting, and explaining their ideas out loud.