Skip Counting by 2s, 5s and 10s: Activities That Work
Skip counting bridges counting by ones and the multiplication table. A child who counts by fives masters the fives table in a single day.
Why skip counting matters
Skip counting by 2s, 5s and 10s speeds up counting objects and lays the base for multiplication. The row "5, 10, 15, 20" is the future fives table. A child memorizes it early as a chant, without strain.
Counting by tens
The chant row
10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100. The row sticks like a rhyme in a couple of days. Support it with bundles of ten sticks: the child counts bundles and names the tens.
Counting by fives
Hands and nickels
5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30. Support — palms: one hand is five, two hands are ten. Then nickels: three coins make 15. Counting by fives also unlocks reading minutes on a clock.
Counting by twos
Pairs of objects
2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12. Support — pairs: socks, mittens, toy eyes. The child counts pairs and doubles. The twos row also locks in the idea of even numbers.
Continue: 10, 20, 30, ... (40)
Count by fives to 30
How much is three pairs of socks? (6 — count 2, 4, 6)
Games for practice
Jump counting
The child jumps and names the row: jump — "five," jump — "ten." Movement locks in the row faster than sitting over a notebook.
Coin counting
Count a handful of nickels by fives, dimes by tens. Money gives counting a purpose.
Ball around the circle
Toss a ball back and forth; each toss is the next number in the row. A mistake restarts the row. The thrill speeds up memorization.
Coloring the rows
On a hundred chart, color the fives row one color, the twos another. Patterns show the structure of each row visually.
The link to multiplication
Skip counting is a ready-made times table. The fives row answers 5×1, 5×2, 5×3. A child who knows the rows masters the 2, 5 and 10 tables in days.
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