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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.
dot card transition activity
Series: Focus on the Lesson

Dot Card Transition Activity

August 17, 2018

Transition time is a great time for mathematizing a daily routine. This dot card transition is a relatively simple routine that builds number sense in a concrete way, allowing them to subitize.

  • Topic: Number Sense
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten
  • Tags Subitizing, Dot cards
Series: Book Ideas January 10, 2018

3 Children’s Books that Build an Understanding of Equivalency

Long before young children are writing equations with the equal sign, they are exploring how amounts that look different can actually be equivalent.

  • Topic: Number Sense, Number Operations
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade
  • Tags Books, Equivalence, Ellen Stoll Walsh, Eve Merriam, April Pulley Sayre, Balancing Act, Twelve Ways to Get to Eleven, One is a Snail Ten is a Crab
Series: Focus on Play July 25, 2017

A Race to Ten, Both Fun and Mathematical

Creating grid games from classroom materials can be a great opportunity for fun and mathematical discussions involving small sets.

  • Topic: Number Sense, Counting
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten
  • Tags Subitizing, Games
Series: Focus on Play July 25, 2017

A Grid Game: The Math in Ten

Grid games can be some of the earliest experiences children have with board games. And they can be both fun and mathematical.

  • Topic: Number Sense, Counting
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten
  • Tags Subitizing, Games
Series: Book Ideas February 15, 2017

Explore Estimation While Enjoying a Whopper of a Tale!

This book is a delightful way to start a discussion about estimation in the early grades. Is it reasonable that Hugh Thomas caught a million fish?

  • Topic: Number Sense
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st Grade
  • Tags Animals, Estimation, Subitizing, Books, Numerosity, A Million Fish...More or Less, Patricia McKissack
Series: Focus on the Lesson September 26, 2016

Attendance Routine to Build Number Sense

This Spanish-language example of a rekenrek attendance routine demonstrates how one teacher can mathematize an everyday activity.

  • Topic: Number Sense, Counting
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten
  • Tags English Language Learner, Rekenrek
Series: Focus on Play August 25, 2016

Matching Cards Game in PreK

A quick matching game with dot cards is a fun way for preschoolers to practice recognizing small sets without counting.

  • Topic: Number Sense
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade
  • Tags Subitizing, Games, Dot cards
EMTR012-2 online math curriculum,education
Series: Focus on the Lesson June 25, 2016

Number Arrangements

Students create visual representations of different numbers. All children will benefit most from exploring number arrangements by beginning with 3 and moving up from that.

  • Topic: Number Sense
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten
  • Tags Subitizing
room on the broom activities
Series: Book Ideas October 13, 2015

Make Room for Halloween Math

Have some Halloween fun with the witch’s tale Room on the Broom. In this lively story by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, a witch makes room for her animal friends to ride on her broomstick……

  • Topic: Number Sense, Number Operations
  • Age/Grade Level: 1st Grade, 2nd Grade, 3rd Grade
  • Tags Animals, Seasonal, Place Value, Holiday, Books, Room on the Broom, Julia Donaldson, Axel Scheffler
preschool books number sense
Series: Book Ideas October 6, 2015

3 Magic Cauldron Books for Kids to Mathematize the Season

One of the most classic images of the Halloween season is a witch's magic pot or cauldron. Singing about witches' brew and reading tales of magical pots can also be a great way to introduce…

  • Topic: Number Sense, Measurement
  • Age/Grade Level: Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade, 3rd Grade
  • Tags Seasonal, Food, Holiday, Books, Capacity, Two of Everything, Lily Toy Hong, The Magic Porridge Pot, Paul Galdone, Strega Nona, Tomie dePaola
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