Place value… Ones, tens, hundreds, thousands………….what do they actually mean? And how many ones do you need to make a ten… and how many tens are needed to make a hundred…. or hundreds needed to make a thousand……?
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Understanding Place Value Takes LOTS of Practice
Oh my goodness…….how we practice building numbers and understanding place value! I try to incorporate as many hands-on opportunities as possible. But this one has become one that they LOVE! They really could play these spin and build games ALL DAY….. I had to call stop one day so that we could go to lunch, and they actually GROANED! And the help that they give each other when they build numbers together makes my heart happy.
Partner Practice Can Be Very Beneficial
The game above is called Race To 1000, but most of the time I partner students up to work TOGETHER to build 1000……I partner a higher student with a student that needs a little support. This also gives me a chance to work with a small group of students that need one-on-one with me at my group table. The higher students are WONDERFUL student peers!
The object of the game is to spin base ten blocks, and add them together until they reach 1000 or more. We never have enough wooden base ten blocks, so I made a class set of blocks on cardstock and laminated them. There is a laminator at school, but I decided to invest in a personal laminator that I can use 5 mil laminate in. It makes these base ten blocks very sturdy. They can be used for years to come once they are laminated with that 5 mil……. So I think all the effort to copy, laminate, and cut them was well worth it.
I have also made a game in which they spin and build numbers with place value disks. They love that game as well, and I think it helps them tie in the concept that they represent the same amounts as the base ten blocks, just in a little more abstract way.
After we work with building numbers to understand place value, we switch to using models of numbers to expand their learning. The following game is one of their favorites! They are engaged in racing each other to the finish line as they draw cards and answer questions about the number models on the cards. There are two levels of games to play: Race to 1,000 and Race to 100. Some students begin the year with Race to 100. Both games are a staple in my room for the school year. I use them with early finishers, centers, small group intervention, or partner play!
Students love to play games and its a great way to have pairs of students actively working together so that I can have some intervention time with students who really need it. We love working with numbers all year long with activities like these.
I hope that you and your students have a wonderfully successful school year!
Happy Teaching!
Robyn Shelton – Caffeine With Class
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