Early Math  /  Subitizing  /  Week 2: Lesson 4  /  Activity

Café Lotto Match

 

Subitizing
Hands-On

Children match groups of diners to tables with the same number of chairs in this fast-paced game.

A teacher holds up a Cafe Lotto Match card showing five characters, and a young boy looks at it. A boy in a yellow striped shirt gleefully places a card on his game board.

Have the children quickly turn over cards for each other, or show each child a Café Lotto Match card for two seconds ONLY.

If a child’s game board has the same number of chairs at a table as on the card he or she has seen, the child should place the Café Lotto Match card on his or her board.

 

Materials


Materials used in Café Lotto Match.
 
Materials PDF
  • 6 Café Lotto Match: Game Boards (PDF)
  • 18 Café Lotto Match: Cards (PDF)
  • Cardstock or plain paper
  • Scissors

Preparation

  1. Print 3 sets of the Café Lotto Match cards and a set of the game boards on cardstock. Cut out and shuffle the Café Lotto Match cards.
  2. Give each child a game board.
 

Directions


This game can be teacher led or child directed. See both versions below.

  1. Tell the children that the object of the game is to match the groups of diners to the table with the correct number of chairs.
  2. Child-Directed Play: Demonstrate how to play with four children as players. Place the stack of cards in a pile facedown in front of the players. Give each child a Café Lotto Match game board.
  3. Player A quickly turns over a card for Player B, shows it for just two seconds, and then hides it. Player B says the number of diners on the card. Player A turns over the card and they count the number of diners on it, checking the answer. If Player B has subitized the correct number of diners and has a matching table and chairs on his or her game board, he or she places the card on that table on his or her board. If there are no matching tables available on Player’s B game board, he or she must put the card back on the table in a discard stack. Then play repeats, with Player B turning over a card for Player C, followed by Players C and D, and D and A.
  4. As the game progresses and they run out of cards, children can reshuffle the discard stack. The first child to fill up his/her game board wins.
  5. Teacher-Led Play: Play a simplified version of this game. You can hold up and show a Café Lotto Match card for only two seconds and have the child whose turn it is check to see if he or she has a space with the matching number of chairs.

Note: For children who need one-on-one support, play a simple counting game. Have the child turn over cards, count the diners, try to find matches on his or her board by counting the chairs, and then place the card on his or her game board.


Length of Play

15 min.

Group Size

Small Group (2–4 players)

In the Schedule

Learning Centers


 
Vocabulary
  • same
  • different
  • more than
  • less than
  • too many
  • not enough
  • number names
 
Learning Goals
  • Recognize sets of one to five objects without counting
  • Learn or reinforce number names
  • Count from 1 to 5
  • Understand that numbers can be represented by objects
  • Compare sets of one to five objects, and identify if the sets are the same or different