Bug in a Jar: Early Maths & Fine Motor Game

Description

Make early maths learning fun and hands-on with this exciting Bug in a Jar game! ?

Designed for young learners in the Early Years and Foundation Phase, this engaging activity helps children practise counting, colour recognition, subitising and fine motor skills while racing to fill their bug jar.

Perfect for maths centres, small-group activities, partner games or individual fine motor practice, this low-preparation resource is easy to set up and fun to play!

What’s Included

• 4 Bug Jar Mats with colourful lids: Red, Teal/Blue, Yellow and Purple. Each jar includes 19 spaces to fill.
• 4 Printable Bug Sheets with matching coloured ladybugs.
• 2 Printable Dice Templates:
  • A Number Die featuring dot patterns from 1–6 to support counting and subitising.
  • A Colour & Action Die featuring Red, Teal, Yellow, Purple, Lose a Turn and Roll Twice.

How to Play

1. Each player chooses a bug jar mat with their favourite coloured lid.
2. Players take turns rolling both dice.
3. The Number Die tells the player how many bugs to collect.
4. The Colour & Action Die tells the player which colour bug to use.
5. If the player rolls the colour matching their jar, they collect the correct number of bugs and place them into their jar.
6. Watch out for the special actions, including Lose a Turn and Roll Twice!
7. The first player to fill all 19 spaces in their jar wins the game!

Fun Ways to Adapt the Activity

Fine Motor Development

Swap the paper bugs for hands-on manipulatives such as:

• Coloured pom-poms
• Plastic tweezers or tongs
• Dot markers (daubers)
• Mini bug counters or erasers

These adaptations make the activity ideal for developing hand strength, coordination and fine motor control.

Maths Differentiation

Subitising Practice:
Encourage learners to recognise the number patterns on the dice without counting each individual dot.

Exact Count Challenge:
For more advanced learners, introduce an exact-count rule. Learners must roll the exact number needed to fill the remaining spaces in their jar.

Cooperative Play

Turn the game into a teamwork challenge! Learners can work together to fill one jar before a timer runs out.

Bug in a Jar is a fun and flexible way to combine early maths learning with hands-on play and fine motor development!