Glitter Bugs and a Math Warm Up

Make some glitter bugs to have a gorgeous classroom display you can integrate with counting and early math! It can also help your students with fine motor skills! 

glitter bug scissor skills craft

With this craft from the Pond Coloring Club, they will:
  • trace a big circle, a horizontal and vertical line along with 6 small circles
  • draw a ladybug face
  • paint or color
  • use a glue stick to apply the glitter
As an alternative to glitter you can teach your students to freehand cut a circle. First show them how to chip a paper strip (see video below) then cut a circle from one of the squares.


The bug can also be used in a math warm up - perhaps before the glitter gets glued! Use the 1-2-3 Happy Dice (also in the club) to roll and make 6 with counters! 


While I'm here I will share with you another warm up idea - this one for addition. You can create happy face counters by printing our number display posters 9-to-a-page or I've created a set that can be printed for your small group Math Kit.

To play Make a Happy Face:

  • students all sit around a scattered arrangement of 1-5 counters
  • take turns to roll the dice
  • students gather any dice combination that makes the total
  • e.g. if 11 is rolled, a student may gather 5, 4 and 2
  • students can check one another's counters for the correct total
math warm up numbers


3 Happy Faces 

Another warm up with these counters is to have students simply take 3 from a dish or pile and find the total. The group all compares the totals and the player with the largest total keeps their counters - the others are returned to the dish.

adding 3 numbers math warm up

I hope your students have fin with number today!