math lessons,

1-2-3 Come Blast Off With Me!

New Year activities, counting backwards from 10 to 0, counting backwards from 20 to 0, blast off activities, Are you looking for a fun new way to review counting backwards from 10 to 0 or 20 to 0?    

I’ve got just the thing!  As I was watching the glittering ball drop in Times Square, I thought what a fun slider to make for “blasting off.”  

I just finished designing the Happy New Year Glitter Ball and hope your students enjoy the new way of reviewing this standard. 

Run off the ball templates.  Rough cut them apart so that students can practice cutting out the circle.  You might want to pre-slit the lines so that students can easily insert their number strip.

Run off the number strips and cut them out on the paper cutter so that all students have to do is cut on the lines to separate them.  

Students glue the strips together and then trace the numbers and insert their strip into the ball.  Demonstrate how this is done, or some students will have difficulty.

Make sure to remind them to write their name on the back of their ball.

When everyone has completed their ball, have them crouch down, read the numbers together slowly, as students slide their strip through their balls counting  backwards with you.

When students have reached 0 they pull their strip 1 last time to reveal the words.  Children jump into the air and yell “Happy New Year!”

Afterwards, you can have them play “I Spy” with a partner or as a whole group.  Call on a child to spy a number.  They call out a number and everyone slides to reveal it.

Students hold up their ball so that you can whole-group assess to make sure everyone has the correct number. Click on the link to view/download New Year Countdown Glitter Ball

New Year activities, counting backwards from 10 to 0, counting backwards from 20 to 0, blast off activities, Thank you for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN anything you think others may find useful.  For a snowman and penguin alphabet and number slider, scroll down to checkout the next article. 

A New Year’s resolution is something that goes in one year and out the other.” -Unknown