Dot Cards

Free puzzles to print

Each set: a Learn sheet with a worked example, 10 puzzles from easiest to hardest, and the answers.

• Level 1

  Ages 4–6 · Pre-K–K

  

  The easiest puzzles use dice patterns from 1 to 6; the number to find is 2 to 5, and 2 of the 6 cards show it.

  Then mixed patterns up to 10: dice, ten-frame rows, two rows, two dice side by side, and scattered dots.

  Then two-part cards with filled and open dots, such as 5 and 3, up to 10.

  The hardest puzzles show 4 cards on top and 4 below with the same four numbers in different patterns; the child draws a line between cards that match.

  On the sheet: “Look quickly. How many dots?”

  Print Level 1 (Letter)Other paper size: A4

The thinking it works on

• Seeing numbers at a glance

  Knows how many dots there are without counting them one by one.

  Starkey and Cooper (1995) concluded that seeing how many are in a small set at a glance develops before counting does, in children aged 2 to 5. Source

• Seeing parts of a number

  Sees a bigger number as two smaller groups.

  Starkey and McCandliss (2014) found that kindergartners counted dots arranged in small groups no faster than scattered dots, while from first grade on, grouping made counting faster. Source

• The number stays the same

  Knows that 6 dots are 6 in any pattern.

  Gelman and Tucker (1975) found that 3- and 4-year-olds treated swapping an item for one of a different color or kind as leaving the number the same. Source

• Telling close numbers apart

  Notices when a card has one dot too many or too few.

  Halberda and Feigenson (2008) tested 3- to 6-year-olds and adults on telling two groups of dots apart. The ability to tell close numbers apart kept sharpening through childhood, reaching adult levels surprisingly late. Source

• Careful searching

  Looks at every card, not just the first match.

• Matching pairs

  Joins two cards that show the same number in different patterns.

  Mix (2008) found that preschoolers matched sets by number less often when the objects' looks suggested another match; only children who knew the number words beat chance. Source

Where is this thinking used?

• Board games: Dice and dominoes are read at a glance, not counted dot by dot.
• Scorekeeping: Tally marks in groups of five are read faster than single lines.
• Checking a set: A box of six eggs or a row of crayons shows at once whether one is missing.
• Reading charts: A glance at a picture chart says which group is bigger.