“What comes after 9?” “What comes before 20?” Questions like these appear in almost every LKG, UKG and Class 1 maths notebook, usually as rows of boxes waiting to be filled. Before and after numbers look simple to adults, but for a young child they are a genuine step up from counting. Your child has to hold the number line in their head and move along it, one step forwards or one step back.
Print-ready worksheets for this topic
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This guide explains what before, after and between mean, how to teach them in five easy steps, games that make practice fun, and the mistakes to watch for, with printable worksheet ideas for UKG and Class 1.
Quick answer:
- After a number means the number that comes next, which is one more. After 7 comes 8.
- Before a number means the number that comes just ahead of it, which is one less. Before 7 comes 6.
- Between two numbers means the number in the middle. Between 6 and 8 is 7.
- Best tool: a number line. Move one step right for after and one step left for before.
- Typical range: 0–20 in LKG, up to 50 in UKG, up to 100 in Class 1 (varies by school).
What do before, after and between mean?
Picture a number line drawn on the floor with chalk, the numbers 0 to 10 written in order from left to right.
- Standing on 5, take one step forward (to the right). You land on 6. So 6 comes after 5.
- Standing on 5, take one step back (to the left). You land on 4. So 4 comes before 5.
- The number with 4 on one side and 6 on the other is 5. So 5 is between 4 and 6.
In maths language, “after” means one more (+1) and “before” means one less (−1). You do not need to use plus and minus with a young child, but it helps you see why this topic is a stepping stone to addition and subtraction.
| Before | Number | After |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 3 | 4 |
| 8 | 9 | 10 |
| 13 | 14 | 15 |
| 19 | 20 | 21 |
| 29 | 30 | 31 |
| 48 | 49 | 50 |
| 69 | 70 | 71 |
| 98 | 99 | 100 |
How to teach before and after numbers in 5 steps
Step 1: Make sure counting is solid
Before and after only make sense if your child can count forwards smoothly in the range you are working on. If they can count to 20 without help, work within 20 first. Counting backwards from 10 to 0 (think rocket countdown) is also very helpful, because “before” is really counting back by one.
Step 2: Walk the number line
Draw a big number line on the floor with chalk, or write numbers on sheets of paper and lay them in a row. Ask your child to stand on a number and step forward for “after” and back for “before”. Using their whole body makes the idea stick.
Step 3: Move to a paper number line
Next, use a number line drawn across the top of a page. Your child puts a finger on the number, slides one jump right for after and one jump left for before, and says the answer.
Step 4: Try it without the number line
Once your child is confident, cover the number line and ask orally: “What comes after 12?” If they hesitate, encourage them to count up from a number they know: “10, 11, 12 … 13!” This counting-on strategy is perfectly fine.
Step 5: Add “between” and write it down
Between is simply before and after combined. Show “6 __ 8” and ask what goes in the middle. Then move to written worksheets with all three types mixed together: “__ 15”, “15 __” and “14 __ 16”.
Games for before and after numbers
- Number train: write numbers on paper “carriages”. Remove one and ask your child which carriage is missing. They are finding the number between its neighbours.
- Hopscotch numbers: chalk a hopscotch grid with numbers. Call “after 4!” and your child hops to 5.
- Missing number cards: lay out cards 1–20 face up, then turn three face down. Your child names the hidden numbers.
- Staircase counting: on each step going up, say the next number (after). Going down, say the number before.
- Calendar hunt: on a wall calendar, ask, “Today is the 14th. What date was yesterday? What will tomorrow be?”
- Snakes and ladders talk: while playing, ask, “You are on 37. What number comes next?” It turns a board game into gentle revision.
Before and after 1 to 20 for LKG and UKG
In LKG, before and after are usually taught within 0–20, often with a number line printed on the page. Our LKG Starter Pack includes before/after pages with a 0–20 number line for exactly this stage. The LKG syllabus guide explains how this fits with the rest of LKG maths.
In UKG, most children extend to 50 and add “between”. Tips for this stage:
- Keep a printed number line on the study table until your child no longer needs it.
- Work in short blocks: one day 1–20, the next 20–35, then 35–50.
- Pay extra attention to numbers near the tens (19, 20, 21 and 29, 30, 31), where most mistakes happen.
Prefer ready-to-print pages?
UKG Worksheets PDF – Tiny Brain Snacks Starter Pack (46 Pages) – A4 PDF, instant download. ₹149 ₹299
Before and after 1 to 100 for Class 1
In Class 1, the range usually grows to 100 and children start linking it to place value. This is a good time to show the pattern behind “after”:
- After 34 is 35: only the ones digit changes.
- After 39 is 40: the ones go back to 0 and the tens go up by one.
- Before 60 is 59: the tens go down by one and the ones become 9.
A 1–100 hundred square (ten rows of ten) is ideal here. “After” is one square to the right, “before” is one square to the left, and when you reach the end of a row you move to the next line. Pair this with number names: once your child can say “after 47 comes 48”, ask them to write forty-eight. Our number names 1 to 100 chart helps with the spelling.
Common mistakes (and how to fix them)
| Mistake | Example | How to help |
|---|---|---|
| Mixing up before and after | Writes 6 as “after 7” | Use the number line and the words “one step forward” and “one step back” |
| Crossing a ten | After 29 writes “210” or “20” | Count it aloud: “27, 28, 29, 30”. Show the tens changing on a hundred square |
| Going back across a ten | Before 40 writes “49” or “30” | Count back aloud from 42: “42, 41, 40, 39” |
| Writing the digits back to front | Writes 31 for 13 | Say the number aloud and show it with ten-sticks and loose ones |
| Skipping zero | Says nothing comes before 1 | Start the number line at 0 so children see that 0 comes before 1 |
If your child keeps mixing up before and after, simplify. Go back to the floor number line and spend a few days on “after” alone before reintroducing “before”.
Printable before and after numbers worksheets
Short, regular practice on paper helps children move from the number line in their hands to the number line in their head. Our UKG Worksheets PDF Starter Pack (46 A4 pages, ₹149) includes before, after and between numbers up to 50, along with numbers 1–50, counting, bigger and smaller, number names one to twenty, and addition and subtraction within 10, plus phonics and early reading pages.
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For Class 1, the Class 1 Maths Worksheets PDF (49 pages) covers before, after and between alongside numbers to 100, place value, addition, subtraction, money and time. You can also look through all our UKG worksheets, or read our guide to UKG worksheets and skills before Class 1.
One practical tip: you are buying a PDF, so you can print the same before-and-after page again a week later. Repeating a page your child found hard, and seeing them finish it faster, is a lovely confidence boost.
Frequently asked questions about before and after numbers
What is the before number and after number?
The after number is the number that comes next when counting, which is one more. The before number comes just ahead of it, which is one less. For 15, the before number is 14 and the after number is 16.
What comes before 1?
Zero comes before 1. Many young children are not sure, so it helps to start number lines at 0 when teaching before and after.
How do I teach before and after numbers to a kindergarten child?
Start with a number line on the floor. Ask your child to stand on a number and take one step forward for after and one step back for before. Once that is easy, move to a paper number line, then to oral questions, then to worksheets.
What number comes between 49 and 51?
50 comes between 49 and 51. To find a between number, look for the number that comes after the smaller number and before the bigger one.
Up to which number should a UKG child know before and after?
It depends on the school, but many UKG programmes work up to 50. LKG usually stays within 0 to 20, and Class 1 extends to 100.
