Counting Activity--Fighting Fires

My students loved this counting activity.  As we were preparing for the fire department to come to our school for an assembly we all practiced our firefighter skills.

Thanks to the father of one of my past students and the Salt Lake Fire Department, each one of my students (actually every student in our school) had a fire hat.  I made "fire extinguishers" out of empty water bottles covered in red paper, and I printed out "fires" and hung them throughout the hallway.  Each paper had a different number of flames on it that the kids would have to count.

We did this activity two different days.  The first day I had cards printed out with written numerals.  The kids would be at the "fire station" which was a designated place in the hall, and I would show them the number.  They would then have to go find the corresponding fire and put it out with their "fire extinguishers."  

The second time we did it, I had cards with flames on it, then the kids had to count those flames and find the matching flames in the hall.  That way they had to count more than once.  

Here are a few reasons why I loved this activity

• It was engaging, the kids loved it
• Math skills
• We worked on counting with one to one correspondence
• We worked on matching objects with written numerals
• Fine Motor
• Squeezing the spray bottles
• Thematic Play
• The kids were pretending they were fire fighters
• Teamwork
• When the kids would find the correct fire, they would call out to the others
• Turn taking
• The kids would take turns "spraying" the fire