Counting in 2s, 5s and 10s

Counting in jumps: skip counting

When you count 1, 2, 3, 4, you take tiny baby steps. But what if you could take bigger jumps and count much faster? You can! It is called skip counting — counting in equal jumps instead of one at a time.

In this lesson you will learn three super-useful jumps: counting in 2s, in 5s and in 10s. Each one has its own rhythm and its own pattern. Once you spot the pattern, the numbers almost sing themselves.

Counting in 2s

To count in 2s, you add 2 each time:

2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20.

Counting in 2s is perfect for things that come in pairs: two shoes, two eyes, two wings. If you have 4 children and want to count their shoes, you do not count one shoe at a time — you count in 2s: 2, 4, 6, 8. Notice the pattern: these are all the even numbers. To learn more about them, see odd and even numbers.

Counting in 5s

To count in 5s, you add 5 each time:

5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50.

Counting in 5s is wonderful for hands, because each hand has 5 fingers. Count the fingers on a group of children and you naturally count in 5s. Look at the pattern: every number ends in 0 or 5. That neat ending makes the 5s easy to remember and easy to check.

Counting in 10s

To count in 10s, you add 10 each time:

10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100.

Counting in 10s is the fastest of all, and it reaches 100 in only ten jumps. Every number ends in 0, and only the tens digit changes. This pattern is so important that we built a whole lesson around it — see counting to 100.

The patterns side by side

Looking at all three together shows why skip counting is so powerful:

Jump number	Count in 2s	Count in 5s	Count in 10s
1	2	5	10
2	4	10	20
3	6	15	30
4	8	20	40
5	10	25	50

Read down each column and feel the rhythm. The bigger the jump, the faster you reach big numbers. That is the why behind skip counting: equal jumps let you count groups quickly instead of plodding one by one.

Worked example 1: counting socks in 2s

A basket has 7 pairs of socks. How many socks is that?

Each pair is 2 socks, so count in 2s, once for each pair: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14. There are 14 socks. Counting in 2s did the work of 14 separate counts in just 7 jumps.

Worked example 2: counting fingers in 5s

Four children hold up one hand each. How many fingers altogether?

Each hand has 5 fingers, so count in 5s, once per child: 5, 10, 15, 20. There are 20 fingers. The 5s pattern made it quick.

Worked example 3: counting in 10s with coins

You have 6 ten-pence coins. How much money is that?

Each coin is worth 10, so count in 10s: 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60. You have 60 pence. Counting money is one of the most useful jobs skip counting does.

Why skip counting matters

Skip counting is the bridge to times tables and multiplication. When you count in 5s, you are really saying the five times table. When you count in 2s, that is the two times table; in 10s, the ten times table. Children who skip count well find multiplication much easier later, because the patterns are already in their heads. Skip counting also speeds up everyday jobs like counting money, counting pairs, and counting groups of objects. You can see this link grow in our times tables lesson.

Try it yourself

1. Clap the 2s. Count in 2s out loud — 2, 4, 6, 8 — and clap on every number. Feel the steady beat.
2. High-five 5s. Use your hands. Count in 5s as you point to groups of 5 fingers: 5, 10, 15, 20.
3. Tens tower. Stack blocks in towers of ten. Count the towers in 10s: 10, 20, 30. How tall can you go?
4. Real-life count. Count the shoes by the door in 2s, or the coins in a jar in 5s and 10s.

A little skip counting every day, and soon the patterns will pop out at you everywhere.