Numbers & math
Hiding ten
- Builds: Number bonds to 10
- 10 min
- Ages 4–6
- Calm
- No mess
From the house
- 10 things the same: spoons, blocks or toy cars
- A tea towel
How to play
- Count out 10 things together and line them up.
- They close their eyes while you hide some under the tea towel.
- They count the ones still showing and work out how many are hiding.
- Lift the towel to check, then swap: they hide and you guess.
Fit it to your child
- Easier: Start with 5 things and find the pairs that make 5.
- Harder: Write each pair as a sum on paper, like 7 + 3 = 10, and see how many different pairs you can find.
Words to use
- ten
- hiding
- how many
- make ten
- altogether
Why it helps
Seeing 7 out and 3 hidden, again and again, helps them learn the pairs that make 10, which makes adding much easier later.