Counting Books

Core Idea

Counting books use numbers and pictures to help you practice counting. Each page shows a number and that many objects to count -- one sun, two shoes, three bears. Some counting books also tell a story that gets bigger and bigger as the numbers grow. They connect reading with math in a playful way.

How It's Best Learned

Read a counting book and point to each object as you count it on the page. Touch each item with your finger to keep track. After reading, find groups of things around the room and count them the same way. Try counting along without looking at the pictures to test your memory.

Common Misconceptions

• Thinking counting books are only for learning numbers; they also build vocabulary and observation skills.
• Believing you need to already know how to count to enjoy a counting book; the book is there to help you learn.
• Assuming all counting books go from 1 to 10; some go higher, some count backwards, and some count by twos or fives.

Explainer

Counting books are books that help you practice counting with numbers and pictures. Each page usually shows a number and then that many objects to count. For example, one page might show the number 2 and two apples, the next page shows the number 3 and three flowers, and so on. When you point to each object and count, "One... two... three!" your finger helps you keep track.

The fun part is that counting books use pictures to make counting real. You can see and point to the actual things you are counting. This helps your brain connect the word for the number ("three") with what three things really looks like. Some counting books also tell a little story as the numbers get bigger and bigger, which makes them extra fun to read together.

Counting books teach you more than just numbers. They help you learn the words for things (like apple, flower, shoe) and they teach you to look carefully at pictures. When you slow down and point to each object, you are practicing how to observe the world closely. That is a skill that helps you in reading and in noticing things around you.

Here is something cool: not all counting books go from 1 to 10. Some go higher, some count backwards, and some count by twos or fives. There are lots of different kinds! And you do not need to know how to count perfectly before you start. The counting book is there to help you learn. Just point to each object with your finger and say the number, one by one. That is all you need to do.