Number 4
Toddler · 2–3Color the number 4 — four. Four is the first number here that genuinely has to be counted rather than seen. It also arranges neatly, which is the interesting part: two and two, or a corner each. Push the four circles into a different arrangement and ask whether it is still four. Color the 4 circles beside it too, touching each one as you count out loud — the last number you say is how many there are, and that is not obvious to a four-year-old. Print it on A4 or US Letter, or color it online with tap-to-fill.
Past the edge of seeing
Four is the first number most children genuinely have to count rather than recognise. Four circles look like a group; how many is in the group only becomes clear by touching each one in turn. This is the point where the skills practised on the earlier pages — one word per object, last word is the answer — stop being a formality and start doing real work.
Four also arranges neatly, which is useful. Two and two. A square of four corners. Four legs on a chair, four wheels on a car. Showing the same four circles grouped differently — and confirming it is still four — is an early encounter with the idea that a quantity does not change when you rearrange it.
Writing 4
The 4 has two accepted forms: the closed one, made in a single stroke with a triangular top, and the open one, made as two separate strokes with a gap at the top. The open version is easier for young hands and is what most early-years schemes teach. Either is correct — just do not switch between them while your child is learning.
Frequently asked questions
- Open 4 or closed 4?
- The open, two-stroke version is easier for a young child to form and is what most early-years programmes use. Pick one and stay with it — alternating is what causes confusion, not the choice itself.
- Does rearranging objects change how many there are?
- No, and testing that is worth doing. Count four circles in a row, push them into a square, count again. Children under about five are often genuinely unsure, and seeing it stay the same is the point.