Counting games for kids.
Join the dots, find the picture.

Eight counting stops

1. 🔢 Count to 10: numbers 1 to 10 in order, the first step in counting.
2. 🎲 How many dots? dice for 1 to 6 and ten-frames for 7 to 10, so children see an amount without counting one by one (subitizing).
3. 🔤 Number words: one, two, three… to ten, for children who are starting to read.
4. 🧮 Count to 20: the teen numbers, where many children get stuck.
5. 🚀 Count back: 10, 9, 8… down to 1, then lift off! A gentle start to counting backwards and taking away.
6. ✌️ Count by 2s: 2, 4, 6… to 20.
7. 🖐️ Count by 5s: 5, 10, 15… to 50, like counting fingers on hands.
8. 🔟 Count by 10s: 10, 20, 30… to 100.

Why skip counting matters

Skip counting by 2s, 5s and 10s is the bridge from counting to adding and, later, to times tables. Children learn it best as a rhythm. After each skip-counting picture, the dots light up again in order while the numbers are chanted (2, 4, 6, 8…), so the pattern is heard and seen together.

Calm and forgiving

There are no timers and no wrong-answer sounds. A dot touched out of order is simply skipped, and the game says which number comes next while that dot glows. Each stop is three pictures, followed by a short celebration. Sound can be switched off with the 🔊 button, and the game can also be played with a keyboard.

Tips for grown-ups

• Before each dot, ask "What comes next?" and let your child say it first.
• Halfway through, ask "What do you think it will be?" The outline is a good clue.
• Take skip counting off the screen: count pairs of socks by 2s, fingers by 5s and stairs in tens.
• For counting back, count down together before a jump, a race or bath time.

More guides