Counting Collections is a hands-on early mathematics approach to develop children’s number sense (understanding of number and quantity), developed by Dr Catherine Gripton and the mathematics education research team for use with children in Reception (four and five years old). The Education Endowment Foundation has commissioned an efficacy randomised controlled trial of the approach (Jan 2023 to April 2025) in which 90 teachers are assigned to the intervention group and 90 to the control group. Teachers in the intervention group use the Counting Collections approach with their classes and those in the control group continue to teach as they usually do.

The trial is being evaluated by Sheffield Hallam University. They will compare attainment data for number learning of the children whose teachers are in the intervention group with the children whose teachers are in the control group to ascertain any differences. They will also evaluate the implementation and processes of the intervention.

The Counting Collections approach supports counting, subitising, comparing numbers and composition of numbers. It involves children using containers of objects (manipulatives) to find how many are in the collection. Children work in pairs to choose, strategise, count and record how many items there are.