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Features

The spindle box drawn as it looks on the shelf, compartments 0 to 4 and 5 to 9
Count the spindles in each compartment and write the number on the box
Draw spindles to match each numeral card
Zero means none: circle the empty compartment and write 0
A box with numbers and spindles missing to write and draw
Count tied bundles of spindles and draw a line to their numerals
Made to be read aloud, with big boxes to write in
Every page in color and in black and white
Answer keys included

Skills Covered

Count loose objects from 0 to 9
Write the numerals 0 to 9
Draw a set to match a numeral

Understand zero as none, an empty set
Know the order of the numerals 0 to 9
Match a counted group to its numeral

How to Use This Pack

Five pages built on the spindle box, read aloud to the child. Page 1 shows two boxes with the numbers left off: the child counts the spindles in each compartment and writes the number on the box above them, as the numerals are painted on the real box. Page 2 has six numeral cards, each over an empty tray: the child draws that many spindles, and none under 0. Page 3 is about zero: the child circles the compartment that has no spindles, then writes how many spindles are in each part of a box, three of them 0. Page 4 is the spindle box from 0 to 9 with some numerals and some spindles missing: the child writes the missing numerals and draws the missing spindles. Page 5 shows tied bundles of spindles to count and match to numeral cards with a line.

In the Classroom

Use the pages after the child has worked with the real spindle box: read each numeral, counted that many spindles into one hand and laid them in the compartment, and found that the 0 compartment stays empty. The 45 spindles are the control of error: a spindle left over, or too few for the 9, shows a mistake somewhere. On the pages, the same check is the order of the box: each compartment holds one more spindle than the one before.

At Home

Put out an egg carton, number its cups 0 to 9, and count craft sticks, pencils or pasta into each cup. Leave the 0 cup empty and talk about it: zero means there are none. Tie each group with a hair band, mix the bundles up, and ask your child to find the bundle of 7.

Tips for Success

Count each spindle as you touch it, and say the last number for the whole group
Zero means none: the 0 compartment is always empty
Each compartment has one more spindle than the one before it
A bundle is easier to count when you touch each spindle end
The real box uses 45 spindles in all, so a spindle left over means a mistake

Common Core Standards Alignment

This pack supports the following Common Core State Standards for Mathematics:

K.CC.A.3 Write the numerals 0 to 20 and use a numeral to show how many objects are in a group, with 0 meaning none.
K.CC.B.4a Count objects by saying numbers in order and matching exactly one number to each object, none skipped or counted twice.
K.CC.B.4b Know the final number in a count gives the total, and the total stays the same however the objects are arranged or counted.
K.CC.B.5 Tell how many: up to 20 objects in a line, array or circle, or 10 scattered. Also count out a requested number up to 20.

Montessori Spindle Box

Pre-K – K

The Montessori spindle box, with its compartments from 0 to 9, for counting loose spindles and learning that zero means none. Children count spindles and write the number, draw spindles to match a numeral, find the empty compartment, fill in a box with numbers and spindles missing, and match tied bundles to their numerals.

Download PDF

What’s Included

5 worksheets in color and in black and white, with answer keys (15 pages)
Count the spindles and write the number, and draw spindles to match
Zero means none: the empty compartment
A box with numbers and spindles missing, and bundles to match

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Free to print and share

This worksheet is free to download, print, copy, and hand out in your classroom or at home. You do not need to create an account, and there are no watermarks on the PDF.