Thursday, February 5, 2015

Those Tricky Teen Numbers!

Hi, Teaching Friends!

There are certain "sticking points" in math that are recognized by all teachers of young children, things that are just plain difficult hurdles for some of our students. Bridging the decades in counting, writing numbers greater than 100 (you know the ones I mean, like "10014" for "114"), ... and then, of course, even before those come along, there are the tricky teen numbers.

First of all, the naming of eleven and twelve is illogical.  If you want to read some truly confusing (and confused) theories about the naming of 11-13, try googling "oneteen, twoteen, threeteen".  The Spanish words seem so much more meaningful: ten and one, ten and two, ten and three, etc.  ESL teachers, I'm wondering if it's easier for your students to understand these numbers because of that.

So, we do what we can to make these numbers real for those who struggle with them, to take them from rote counting to the deeper understanding they'll need to move forward in place value.

Here's my bit of help for your strugglers, and with a seasonal twist, too! Enjoy this freebie!





After you let them have lots and lots of practice with concrete objects, try this set of 24 cards to move your students to the representational stage. Also included is a student recording page for using these cards as a Read and Write the Room activity. 

Many thanks to Teacher's Gumbo (love those love bugs!!),  Graphics From the Pond, and The Thematic Teacher for the fonts and graphics used in this set!



If you're looking for some fresh new ideas for February, I'd love it if you'd stop by my Primary Inspiration blog to pick up some goodies at this linky. You'll find nearly 100 free and paid resources for this very busy month! Just click here to see them all!




Happy Teaching!




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