When I was a teacher, we always took a field trip to the zoo during the spring. My students LOVED it! To tap into this excitement, I always tried to incorporate themed activities into the weeks before and after the field trip. This Zoo First to 20 and First to 50 Math Game will be the perfect addition to your math centers.
Zoo First to 20 and First to 50 Math Game contains four different math mats for counting to 20 and four different mats for counting to 0, as well as a printable for a DIY number cube.
Getting Zoo First to 20 and First to 50 Math Game Ready
You will want to print out enough math mats for your students to complete. My students always completed this game during math centers so I always had five printed and ready to go (because that is the max number of students per center).
Whatever your magic number is, have that many printed. It is recommended that you print on cardstock and laminate so that they can be used for years to come. You will need to print out the dice and glue together. I find that it does better when also printed on cardstock.
Doing Zoo First to 20 and First to 50 Math Game
Each student playing the game, will need to have a math mat, counters, and a number cube (or dice). If students are working in pairs or small groups, I always encourage each student to roll the dice before starting. The highest (or lowest) number gets to be the first person to roll.
The first person will roll the dice. My daughter’s number was two.
She placed two counters on her math mat.
The next person will then roll the dice and place counters on their mat. This will continue until the lucky winner fills up their board to twenty!
To shake things up a bit, you can make it where they have to roll on the exact number left in order to fill up their board and win. For example, this student has 19 spots filled up. They have only there left. In order to win, he must roll a 1. If he does not roll a 1, one of his partners may be able to win.
If your students are wanting more of a challenge, they can play First to 50. Students will follow the same instructions as described above, but will have 50 spots to fill on their mats.
Download your free Zoo First to 20 and First to 50 Math Game below!
Can you not find a resource that you would LOVE to have for your classroom? Contact me and I would be happy to make it for you.
Click the picture below to download. You will immediately be redirected to the freebie.
I hope that you and your students enjoy this Zoo First to 20 and First to 50 Math Game! Are you looking for more zoo ideas and activities, similar to do at home or in the classroom? If so, check out some more of our favorites below or check out all of our ideas under the Zoo Lesson Plans area of our site!
My grandson (almost 3) loves doing number and is so proud when he counts! He will have fun with this?
That’s wonderful! I’m so glad he likes it. Thanks for stopping by!
Thank you for these wonderful games and activities. They are a fun way to reinforce learning.
Great math games and activities. Thank you for sharing.