Skip counting

Here you will learn about skip counting, including skip counting by twos, fives, tens, and hundreds, and skip counting using a number line.

Students will first learn about skip counting as part of counting and cardinality in Kindergarten and will extend their knowledge as part of number and operations in base ten in 2nd grade.

What is skip counting?

Skip counting is counting by a number other than one.

To do this, you start at zero and add the same number each time you count forward.

For example, to skip count by 2, start at zero, then continue to add 2.

0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12…

You can show skip counting using a number line.

You can skip count starting at any number.

For example,

Skip count by 2 starting at 5.

5, 7, 9, 11, 13…

Skip count by 5 starting at 10.

10, 15, 20, 25, 30…

What is skip counting?

Common Core State Standards

How does this relate to Kindergarten math and 2nd grade math?

• Kindergarten – Counting and Cardinality (K.CC.1)
  Count to 100 by ones and by tens.

• 2nd grade – Number and Operations in Base Ten (2.NBT.2)
  Count within 1000; skip-count by 5s, \, 10s, and 100s.

How to skip count

In order to skip count:

1. Find the starting number. If no starting number is mentioned, start at zero.
2. Identify the number you will be skip counting by and add/subtract it to the starting number.
3. Continue to add the number to the previous number in the sequence in order to find the next number.

Skip counting examples

Example 1: skip count by 5

Skip count by 5 up to 50.

1. Find the starting number. If no starting number is mentioned, start at zero.

Since no starting number was mentioned, start at zero.

0,

2Identify the number you will be skip counting by and add/subtract it to the starting number.

You are skip counting by 5, so you need to add 5 to the starting number of zero.

0 + 5 = 5

Now your sequence is,

0, 5,

3Continue to add the number to the previous number in the sequence in order to find the next number.

5 + 5 = 10

10 + 5 = 15…

If you continue this to 50, your sequence will be,

0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50

Example 2: skip count by 100

Skip count by 100 up to 1,000.

Example 3: skip counting odd numbers

Skip count by 2, starting at 1. Stop at 21.

Example 4: skip counting on a number line

Using a number line, skip count by 5 starting at 2.

Find the starting number. If no starting number is mentioned, start at zero.

The starting number is 2.

Identify the number you will be skip counting by and add/subtract it to the starting number.

You are skip counting by 5, so you need to add 5 to the starting number of 2.

2 + 5 = 7

You can show this as a jump on the number line.

Continue to add the number to the previous number in the sequence in order to find the next number.

7 + 5 = 12

12 + 5 = 17…

Show each jump forward by 5 as a jump on the given number line until you can’t jump ahead any further.

The sequence shown on the number line is 2, 7, 12, 17, 22.

Example 5: skip counting backwards

Fill in each blank by skip counting backwards by 10 starting at 74.

Find the starting number. If no starting number is mentioned, start at zero.

The starting number is 74. Write 74 on the first line.

Identify the number you will be skip counting by and add/subtract it to the starting number.

You are skip counting by 10, but you are skip counting backwards. This means that instead of adding, you will subtract 10 from the starting number of 74.

74-10 = 64

Write 64 on the next line.

Continue to add the number to the previous number in the sequence in order to find the next number.

Example 6: skip counting word problem

Jamie has 6 baskets. Each basket has 3 apples. Skip count by 3 to find out how many apples Jamie has altogether.

Find the starting number. If no starting number is mentioned, start at zero.

The starting number is 3 since the first basket has 3 apples in it. You can use six lines since you will only need to skip count by 3 six times.

Identify the number you will be skip counting by and add/subtract it to the starting number.

We are skip counting by 3 since each basket has 3 apples in it. We add 3 to the starting number of 3.

3 + 3 = 6

This represents the total number of apples in the first two baskets.

Continue to add the number to the previous number in the sequence in order to find the next number.

There is a total of 18 apples in the 6 baskets.

Teaching tips for skip counting

• Incorporate skip counting practice into math centers by providing students with skip counting activities and math games involving skip counting.

• Provide students with skip counting practice by having a variety of printable skip counting worksheets available for students to use in math centers or for morning work.

• Students can also use number flash cards for a quick and easy math activity – students can choose a number to skip count by and find the flash cards that create the sequence.

• Ask students to create skip counting posters. These can include the most common numbers used for skip counting (2, 5, 10, 100) or all numbers up to 10.

• Give students a challenge by asking them to skip count backward. This will require them to use subtraction instead of addition.

• Ask students what number patterns they notice when skip counting. This will help set the foundation for their understanding of number patterns and multiplication tables in later grades.

• For a fun, whole-class skip counting activity, ask students to stand in a circle and give them a number from 2-10 or 100. The first student starts with that number, then the students go around the circle skip counting by saying the next number aloud until each student says a number.

Easy mistakes to make

• Starting at the wrong number
  Students may think skip counting always begins at zero. However, some questions will give students a different starting number.

• Thinking that skip counting by certain numbers will always show the same pattern
  Students may have preconceived notions about skip counting by common numbers such as 2 and 5. If students are skip counting by 2s, they may automatically think they are skip counting even numbers starting with number 2.
  However, if the question asks them to skip count by 2 starting at 1, the sequence will include 1, 3, 5, 7, 9… and so on. Not only will this not include the number 2, but the sequence will only include odd numbers.

Related arithmetic lessons

• Calculator skills
• Money word problems
• Number sense
• Inverse operations
• Two step word problems

The next lessons are

• Properties of equality
• Multiplication and division

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