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Nursery rhymes · Counting and matching

Baa Baa Black Sheep counting activity

Give each character one bag of wool, then count how many bags you needed.

Try the activity
Photograph of Baa Baa Black Sheep felt characters and a wool bag, displayed in front of a story backdrop.View this felt set on Etsy Opens in a new tab

Give one bag to each character

Prep · About 3 minutes   Play · About 7 minutes

Gather · Three paper bags drawn on scraps, three character pictures, and a sheep picture if you have one. Felt story pieces work too.

  1. Set out three friends. Say or sing the rhyme once. Put the three people from your version in a row and stack the bags beside the sheep.
  2. Give each friend one bag. Move one bag to each person as you say the rhyme again. Pause between turns so children can check who still needs a bag.
  3. Count the bags together. Touch each bag once and count aloud. Mix the bags back into a pile and ask a child to hand them out again.

Try saying · “Does everyone have one bag? How many bags did we need altogether?”

Make it easier · Start with two characters and two bags, then add the third pair.

Keep it going · Offer a fourth bag and ask what is left after everyone gets one.

Get the materials

Storytime Club · Annual library

Print it for your next storytime

Find the Baa Baa Black Sheep worksheet bundle PDF in the annual library. Print the matching worksheets for another nursery-rhyme activity after counting together.

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