Numbers & math
One for teddy
- Builds: One-to-one matching
- 10 min
- Ages 1–3
- Calm
- No mess
From the house
- 3 teddies or dolls
- 3 plastic cups or bowls
- 3 tea towels or washcloths
How to play
- Sit the teddies in a row: “The teddies are hungry!”
- They give each teddy one cup: “One for you, one for you, one for you.”
- Now it’s bedtime, so give one tea-towel blanket each: does every teddy have one?
- Hide one cup and ask, “Who has no cup?”
Fit it to your child
- Easier: Use two teddies, and hand them the cups to give one at a time.
- Harder: Add a fourth teddy but keep three cups: “Are there enough? How many more do we need?”
Words to use
- one
- each
- for you
- every
- missing
Why it helps
Giving exactly one to each teddy is one-to-one matching, which they need before counting can make sense.