Number 3 worksheets
A number 3 worksheet for ages three to five, in preschool or starting kindergarten. It prints eight rows of the numeral 3 as dotted outlines on penmanship guides, with room after each trace to write a 3 alone. The 3 is two curves stacked up, both facing the same way.
Free printable PDF worksheet.
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 Preschool number tracing.
How to teach this
Start on the top line at the left. Curve round to the right and back in to the middle of the space, then curve round to the right again, a little bigger, and come back to the bottom line on the left. That makes two bumps, both pointing right, in one stroke. Many preschools use a rhyme for it: around the tree and around the tree, that's the way to make a three. The bottom bump is the bigger one so the 3 stands steady. Count to three a lot, because three is about as many as a young child can see at a glance without counting: three wheels on a tricycle, three bears.
Watch for: The 3 written backwards, with the bumps facing left, so it looks like a rounded capital E. Both bumps open to the left and push out to the right. Starting on the left side is the fix. Two equal bumps that meet in a point in the middle. The 3 comes back in to the middle without stopping, and the bottom bump is a little bigger than the top one.
Common questions about number 3
- My child's 3 looks like an E. What do I do?
- That is a backward 3, and it is very common at four. The bumps should face right. Start each trace at the left end of the top line and say around the tree, around the tree, so the pencil always swings out to the right.
- Is there a trick for remembering how to write 3?
- The rhyme around the tree and around the tree, that's the way to make a three works for a lot of children. It names both bumps and says which way they go.
Related worksheets
- Preschool number tracing Whole ranges on one sheet, like 1 to 10, 11 to 20 or 1 to 20
- Number 2 worksheets The number before
- Number 4 worksheets The number after
- Number chart 1 to 20 The numbers 1 to 20 on one page
- Kindergarten number tracing A step harder, same skill
- Preschool color words Same grade, nearby skill
- Preschool cutting practice Same grade, nearby skill
- Preschool letter tracing Same grade, nearby skill
- Preschool name tracing generator Same grade, nearby skill
- Number tracing, all grades The full progression
- All preschool English worksheets Every skill at this level
- All preschool worksheets Everything at this level
Ready to print one?
Need more copies? Print it again. It comes out the same.
Reviewed by the One more sheet team. Content version 240, updated October 2026.
Spot a mistake on this sheet? Tell us. · About these worksheets