Count efficiently in groups of 5

I can count in groups of five and identify how many groups there are.

Download all resources

Share activities with pupils

New

Year 1

Count efficiently in groups of 5

I can count in groups of five and identify how many groups there are.

Download all resources

Share activities with pupils

These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Switch to our new teaching resources now - designed by teachers and leading subject experts, and tested in classrooms.

View new resources

Slide deck

Download slide deck

Skip slide deck

Lesson details

Key learning points

Objects can be put into groups of 5 to make them easier to count.
It is more efficient to skip count in fives instead of ones.
Groups of 5 can be called fives.
Counting back in fives from a given amount can be used to check that the count was accurate.

Keywords

Group of 5 - Group of five objects that can be counted in fives.
Fives - Another name for the multiples of five.
Altogether - The amount in the whole set or group.
Accurately - An accurate result means a result that is correct.
Efficiently - Not wasting time or effort. An efficient strategy is one we can carry out easily.

Common misconception

Children may confuse the number of groups with the total, so 3 groups of 5 may be counted as 3 and not 15

Provide opportunities for children to identify both the number of groups as well as the total throughout. Encourage the use of the stem sentences to support their articulation of this.

This lesson progresses from counting items that usually appear in fives to those that are simply grouped in fives. Ensure children have lots of opportunities to continue counting forwards and backwards in fives, between 0 and 50, beyond this lesson.