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Math Strands

Types

for

Audience

Special Topics

Number Sense

Number sense is the ability to understand the quantity of a set and the name associated with that quantity. Strong number sense developed in the early years is a key building block of learning arithmetic in the primary grades, as it connects counting to quantities, solidifies and refines the understanding of more and less, and helps children estimate quantities and measurements.

Copyright: Erikson Institute’s Early Math Collaborative. Reprinted from Big Ideas of Early Mathematics: What Teachers of Young Children Need to Know (2014), Pearson Education.

Number sense involves some Big Ideas that can be explored with children, such as:

  • The quantity of a small collection can be intuitively perceived without counting.
  • Quantity is an attribute of a set of objects and we use numbers to name specific quantities.
  • Numbers are used in many ways, some more mathematical than others.
Series: Focus on Play

Quantity Cards for Subitizing

November 17, 2021

Quantity is a particular amount of something, expressed as a number. Quantity cards for young children can have pictures of small sets such as dots, finger patterns, or 5- or 10- frames. The ones we have available on our site use a variety of pictures or "suits," since matching quantities such as fingers and dots can help develop ideas about equivalence.

  • Topic: Number Sense
  • Tags Subitizing, Play, Games, Family Math, En Español
eric carle books
Series: Book Ideas August 18, 2021

Beloved Eric Carle Books Illustrate the Math in Story Time

For over 50 years, millions of children have returned again and again to the books illustrated and written by Eric Carle. Kids can’t get enough of his colorful collages, animal characters, and rhythmic texts.

  • Topic: Pattern, Number Sense, Counting
  • Tags Eric Carle, Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See?, 1-2-3 to the Zoo: A Counting Book, Rooster's Off to See the World
cardinality of a set
Series: Focus on the Child May 19, 2021

Why Cardinality is the Goal of Counting

What is cardinality? And how is it related to counting? The common definition of cardinality states that it’s the understanding that the last number word said when counting tells how many in all.

  • Topic: Sets, Number Sense, Counting
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten
  • Tags Cardinality
diy rekenrek
Series: Ideas at Work April 14, 2021

DIY Rekenrek Ideas for Home and School

To encourage teachers and other adults to use rekenreks, it's important to not only go over ways to use a rekenrek, but also we thought we would make sure everyone has opportunities to have them,…

  • Topic: Number Sense, Counting
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten
  • Tags Subitizing, Rekenrek
rekenrek activity, rekenrek voting
Series: Focus on the Lesson April 13, 2021

Rekenrek Chart for Voting in the Classroom

Looking for new rekenrek activity ideas? Try voting with a rekenrek chart. In this video, we see a rekenrek chart used to solve a dilemma common to early childhood classrooms: choosing between two favorite books…

  • Topic: Number Sense, Data Analysis
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st Grade
  • Tags Subitizing, Rekenrek
rekenrek number talk, rekenrek number rack
Series: Focus on the Lesson March 17, 2021

Making the Number Ten on a Rekenrek

A good sense of the number ten is critical for building young children’s reasoning strategies. Here we see kindergarteners making the number ten on a rekenrek, a tool with red and white beads in groups…

  • Topic: Number Sense
  • Age/Grade Level: Kindergarten, 1st Grade
  • Tags Subitizing, Rekenrek
number words printable activity cards
Series: Book Ideas August 11, 2020

3 Children’s Books Where Small Numbers Matter

As children start using number words, they don’t always have a sense of what those words really mean. Early on, we guide children to develop a meaningful number sense by focusing on small numbers.

  • Topic: Number Sense
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten
  • Tags Subitizing, Tana Hoban, Family Math, More Fewer Less, Uno Dos Tres/One Two Three, Pat Mora, Two Mice, Sergio Ruzzier, download
Fingerplay songs for Preschoolers 2
Series: Ideas at Work May 27, 2020

Math at Your Fingertips: Songs and Fingerplays for Preschoolers

Do you remember enjoying fingerplay songs like 5 Little Monkeys or Un Elefante Se Balanceaba when you were young? You may not have realized that sharing these songs is a great way to bring math…

  • Topic: Number Sense, Counting
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten
  • Tags Gesture, Games, Family Math, En Español
Number Sense Activities spinner diy
Series: Ideas at Work May 26, 2020

Get on the Right Path: Make Your Own Number Sense Activities

En Español También. Path games are fantastic ways for families to spend time together and have fun while doing math. Path games develop number sense, counting skills and, depending on children’s ages and the tools…

  • Topic: Number Sense, Counting
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st Grade
  • Tags Games, Family Math, En Español
math talk_636x363
Series: Ideas at Work April 26, 2020

We’re Going on a Math Walk, Going to Find Some Math Talk

En Español También. Going for walks is an excellent time to talk about math with your child. You’ll be surprised how much math talk you can have when you look for the math in your…

  • Topic: Number Sense, Counting, Spatial Relationships, Shape
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade, 3rd Grade
  • Tags Family Math, En Español
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