Help students draw and cut out five images of a monkey and one image of an alligator. Attach to wooden craft sticks. Select six students to hold the paper puppets. Familiarize the students with the following rhyme: “(Five) little monkeys/Swinging from a tree/Teasing Mr. Alligator/‘You can’t catch me’/Along came Mr. Alligator/Quiet as can be/And SNAPPED one monkey/Right out of that tree.” Substitute four, three, two, and one until all monkeys are gone.
Provide a fish bowl and construction paper in bright colors. Direct the students to cut five fish shapes from the paper and place into the fish bowl. Attach double-stick tape to a wooden craft stick. It is time to go fishing. The students take turns catching one fish at a time and counting how many fish remain. Repeat the activity until all fish are gone. Increase the number of fish shapes to 10 as math skills progress.
Provide colored construction paper, markers, glue, pipe cleaners and wiggly eyes. Trace the figures one through five onto several different colors of the construction paper. Instruct students to cut out the numbers and transform them into insects. Decorate with markers and eyes. Attach pipe cleaners for legs and antennae. Assemble the numbers into equations and glue to paper. Use a marker to draw subtraction and equals signs. Example: Number five cricket minus number one ant equals number four grasshopper.
Wrap flannel around a large piece of cardboard and secure with tape. Cut five ladybug shapes from red felt. Draw one large leaf shape onto green felt and cut. Instruct students to decorate the ladybugs with a black fabric pen. Place the leaf on the flannel board. The felt fabric will stick to flannel without glue. Place the five ladybugs on the leaf. Create stories with the students. Example: Five ladybugs are snacking on a leaf. One left to do homework. How many ladybugs remain?