Why does 20 start with a 2 when the numbers before it start with 1?

Every teen number is one ten and some more ones. At 20 there are two full tens, so the first numeral becomes a 2, and the 0 says there are no extra ones. Two full ten frames show it.

What comes after the number 20 sheet?

Writing past 20 is first grade work. In kindergarten, print the 1 to 20 sheet from the number tracing page now and then, and count to 100 out loud; the hundreds chart shows the pattern.

Number 20 worksheets for kindergarten, free printable PDF

Number 20 worksheets

Number 20 tracing worksheet for kindergarten, the numeral as dotted outlines on penmanship guides — A real sample sheet.

A number 20 worksheet for kindergarten, for five and six year olds. It prints eight rows of 20 as dotted outlines on penmanship guides, with room after each trace to write 20 alone. Twenty is two tens and no extra ones, so it starts with a 2 and ends with a 0. It is the last number the kindergarten standard asks children to write.

Free printable PDF worksheet, aligned to Common Core K.CC.A.3.

One page for every number

Each number from 1 to 20 has its own page, with its strokes in words, the mix-ups to watch for and a sheet of that one numeral to trace. The numbers 1 to 10 are preschool pages and 11 to 20 kindergarten ones.

What's on each sheet

Number tracing. Trace each number across the line. Then write it yourself on the rest of the line. 8 rows per page.

Every version prints on US Letter or A4, with its answer key on the last page.

Whole ranges, like 1 to 10 or 11 to 20, print from one form on Kindergarten number tracing.

How to teach this

Make the 2 first: start a little below the top line, curve up and over to the right, slant down to the bottom line on the left, and finish with a line along the bottom going right. Lift, leave a small gap, and make the 0: start at the top, go round to the left, down to the bottom line and back up to close it where you began. Around, down, across, then round. Twenty is all ten fingers and all ten toes, so count them together, fingers first, and write 20 when you reach the last toe.

Watch for: Writing 02 for 20, or putting a 1 in front because every number before it had one. The 2 comes first and means two tens. Starting the 0 at the bottom or going round to the right. The 0 starts at the top and goes left, the same way as in 10. Mixing up 20 and 12. Both have a 2 in them; in 20 the 2 comes first and in 12 it comes second.

Common questions about number 20

Why does 20 start with a 2 when the numbers before it start with 1?: Every teen number is one ten and some more ones. At 20 there are two full tens, so the first numeral becomes a 2, and the 0 says there are no extra ones. Two full ten frames show it.
What comes after the number 20 sheet?: Writing past 20 is first grade work. In kindergarten, print the 1 to 20 sheet from the number tracing page now and then, and count to 100 out loud; the hundreds chart shows the pattern.

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Aligned to Common Core K.CC.A.3. Reviewed by the One more sheet team. Content version 240, updated October 2026.

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