Missing Numbers 1 to 20

The grid counts from 1 to 20, but seven of the numbers have gone missing. The empty boxes are outlined in orange, and the job is to work out what belongs in each one and write it in.

Filling a gap is harder than reciting, because the child has to pick up the count midstream — what comes after 8, what sits between 13 and 15 — instead of running up from one. That before-and-after sense is the foundation the next year of number work builds on.

Most children solve the early gaps quickly and slow down noticeably in the teens. If a gap stalls completely, have them whisper-count from the nearest number they can see.