Math For Young Learners: Counting a Dozen

 I Wonder…How Much Is a Dozen?

Round Up These Things

1 empty 1-dozen egg carton

12 small things that will fit inside the egg carton holders, such as plastic dinosaurs.

Let’s Find Out

1. Open the egg carton and place it on a table.
2. Using your finger, touch and count each bowl-shaped egg holder in the egg carton.

So Now We Know

The egg carton holds one dozen eggs. Inside the carton you counted 12 holders, one for each egg. This means that one dozen eggs is equal to 12 eggs. Anytime you count out 12 things, you are counting out one dozen things.

Tip: You can later use egg cartons that hold 18 eggs to introduce a larger amount or maybe even one and one-half dozen. The size of the cartons can be used to introduce terms that compare

sizes, such as: bigger/smaller; more/less

More Fun Things to Know and Do

1. Use the egg carton to practice counting.

2. Use the egg carton to count out 1 dozen dinosaurs.

* Count each dinosaur as you place it in a holder.
* Now take the dinosaurs out of the carton, counting each one as they are removed.

Tip: When your child is ready to recognize numbers, write the numbers 1 through 12 on squares of paper. (This is a good time to use scrap paper. Recycling is always a good topic and you could use scrap paper.) Your child could place the numbers in order in the carton holders–saying the numbers as they are positioned. Say each number as you place it in a holder.

Janice VanCleave’s Teaching the Fun of Science to Young Learners: Grades Pre-K through 2