Tally Mark Clip Cards

My kindergarteners have become masters of counting by 1’st and 10’s lately, and now we are working through the challenge of counting by 5’s! Tally marks are a natural fit because they group together on every 5th one. These tally mark clip cards are a great, hands on way to practice counting by 5’s, counting on and working on fine motor a bit as well!

For more math fun, check out our Place Value Cover Up activity in our shop!

Getting Ready

Prepping these tally mark clip cards is a fairly quick and simple task!

I first printed out the cards, then I laminated them to keep them sturdy. I will use them many times with my kids, so this saves me from having to print them often and keeps them from getting bent under the weight of the clothespins.

I then cut along the lines so that I had 18 individual cards.

To make the cards self-correcting, I marked the correct answers with a dot on the back.

I set them out with a basket of clothespins, and we were ready to count and clip tally marks!

Tally Mark Clip Cards

I kicked off this activity in a small group so that we could play together as we learned. Tally marks are still a bit new to my kids, so I wanted to be there to help them out the first time.

We took turns grabbing a card and counting the tally marks aloud together. When they went strictly by 5’s, my group did pretty well!

It was a bit trickier when we had to count on though. For instance, when we pulled out the 18 card, my kinders had to count by fives and then switch it up and start counting by ones: “5, 10, 15….16, 17, 18.” It was an excellent challenge!

We decided on the correct answer, and then clipped the answer with a wooden clothespin. Clip cards are great for building up those writing muscles!

These cards have various numbers up to 50, so they are perfect for tally mark beginners. As we get more practice, I will make it an independent activity in our math centers.

Grab Your Copy

Ready to practice counting tally marks?! Click the blue button below to download your copy of the clip cards and then hop over and snag our Place Value Cover Up!