Numbers and Counting in the Kitchen (A1)
🎙 From the classroom: As a barista, I measured everything: 18 grams of coffee, 93 degrees, 28 seconds. Numbers are everywhere in cooking and every kitchen in the world. Using the kitchen as a context makes numbers real — not abstract symbols on a whiteboard.
💡 The Idea
Numbers 1-20 in English, plus quantity words: one cup · two spoons · three eggs · four slices. Then basic arithmetic in English: plus (+), minus (-), equals (=), times (×). Recipe language is a fantastic context for A1 number work — every number has a purpose.
🗣 Example
1️⃣ one 2️⃣ two 3️⃣ three 4️⃣ four 5️⃣ five
6️⃣ six 7️⃣ seven 8️⃣ eight 9️⃣ nine 🔟 ten
11 eleven 12 twelve 13 thirteen 20 twenty🍪 Cookie recipe: two cups of flour, one egg, three spoons of sugar, twelve minutes in the oven.
🎯 Try It Now!
🧁 Mini Recipe Dictation!
Listen (or read) and write the numbers:
- You need ________ eggs.
- Add ________ spoons of flour.
- Bake for ________ minutes.
- Makes ________ biscuits.
Then create your OWN silly recipe using numbers 1-20!
Example: ‘My magic cake: 17 chocolate chips, 3 rainbow drops, 9 minutes in a unicorn oven!’
✅ Check Your Answers
✅ Dictation answers (teacher’s version): 3 eggs / 5 spoons of flour / 20 minutes / 12 biscuits. The silly recipe is creative — encourage children to say their recipe aloud. ‘I need FOURTEEN chocolate chips!’ Saying numbers out loud cements the pronunciation.
Independent project — not affiliated with, endorsed by, or accredited by Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Confers no qualification.