Turkey Race: Free Printable Counting Board Game 1-10 for Preschool and Kindergarten

How to use this

• What it builds

  This is a number line you play on. The board is one straight row of squares numbered one to ten, and every spin moves the turkey one or two squares along it. Because the child counts out loud while moving, starting from the square they are standing on, they feel that bigger numbers are further along. That link between a number and a distance is what researchers call a mental number line, and it is one of the best early predictors of later maths. Board games built on exactly this idea (a straight track, numbers on every square, saying the numbers while moving) helped four and five year olds in classroom studies by Siegler and Ramani. The numbers have to stay on the squares: in those studies the same game played with colours did not work.

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• Ready when

  A child who can count aloud to ten and take turns with a grown-up or another child. They do not need to write numbers. If counting past five is still shaky, play with a spinner that only shows 1 and start the game on square 3.

• How to run it

  Print one copy. A grown-up cuts out the two turkeys and makes the spinner: put a pencil tip in the middle and flick a paper clip round it (no paper clip? flip a coin: heads is 1, tails is 2). Each player puts a turkey on Start. Take turns: spin, then move that many squares, saying every number you pass out loud. If you are on 3 and spin a 2, say 4, 5. If a number is missed, say it together and have the child repeat it. The first turkey to reach 10 wins the feast. Play a few short games rather than one long one; ten to fifteen minutes is plenty. Circle one face in the corner when you finish so you can see how it went over the week. Both UK (A4) and US (Letter) paper sizes print from the same download.

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