Introducing: Place Value 1 (Grouping into 10s)
Hints and Tips
All About Place Value, How Place Value Works
Please follow the links to the two above pages on our main site before you begin to introduce this topic to your child.
Place value is one of the fundamentals of how our number system works.
In order to understand our number system, your child must be taught that the same digit can mean different things, for example, the symbol 5 can mean 5 ones, or 5 tens or 5 millions.
The idea that one ten is the same as ten ones needs to be introduced carefully, as does the idea that the two in twenty represents two tens or twenty ones.
You must be careful to make sure this concept is really understood by your child as this is the foundation for many other areas of maths.
Moving slowly through this topic and allowing plenty of time for your child to understand the underlying concepts will reap rewards throughout the rest of his/her maths learning.
It is easy to move on too quickly; for instance your child may be able to recognise, say and write 36, but this doesn't mean they understand the value of the digits in the number.
When grouping in tens it is helpful if you can fix the objects together. for example with building bricks you can clip them together or you can fasten drinking straws into bundles with a rubber band or ribbon. other objects could be put into a see through bag. Fixing the 10s like this helps your child to see the single objects as a group.
We cannot emphasise enough the amount of time and effort needed in this area of maths.
It may seem tedious to you but please do not rush it as this is a concept at the very foundation of your child's future maths learning.
Why do all new topics start with working with objects in maths?
Essential Prior Knowledge
Know we have a system of numbers.
know that numbers beyond 10 exist and how the pattern works
Be able to count to 100 in ones and tens
Activity
Take a large number of objects (straws, conkers, pasta shapes, buttons etc), less than 100, and toss them onto the carpet, onto the table or up in the air for example.
Ask your child to count them. Do not offer any assistance here. This is also an opportunity for you to check up on his/her counting.
If your child makes any mistakes do not correct him/her but make a note of the misconceptions to work on at a later date.
After a while, distract your child, in order to make him/her forget where he/she had counted to.
Make a big thing about it and ask your child if he/she can think of another way to do it to make it easier.
If your child comes up with an idea then try that.
If not ask your child to count again.
Record the answer then suggest we should check.
Ask your child to count again. The chances are that he/she will get a different number.
Discuss with your child the difficulties he/she encountered during this task.
If your child suggested grouping into 10s to help count then follow-up on this suggestion and group the counting objects together into groups of 10. Place the groups to the left hand side and keep grouping until there are less than 10 objects left. If your child hasn't suggested this then you can make that suggestion yourself.
Ask your child what to do with the objects that don't make another 10.
Leave these objects singly to the right of the groups of 10.
Now ask your child to count the objects again, starting with the groups of 10.
First count how many groups of 10 there are, for example there are 6 tens. Either you or your child should record this 6 or place a number card below the bundles showing a 6. Say 'we have 6 tens here' while placing the card down.
Then count the single objects, say 3 and place a 3 number card or write 3 beside the 6.
Discuss with your child that this means this particular number has 6 tens and 3 ones or units.
You can then go on to say we say sixty-three when we say this number.
This time count each bundle as a ten; 10, 20, 30 ..........60. The sixty and one 61, sixty and 2, 62 and sixty and three, 63.
This may seem like a long and drawn out way to count the objects but by explaining carefully at each stage, your child will, with lots and lots more practise, begin to understand this all important concept.
This activity needs to be repeated with different numbers many times, each time going through the same process until your child shows you that he/she has an understanding of the concept.
At this point ensure the numbers you are counting stay below 100.
Do not worry about doing any more recording than that mentioned above. Recording more formally will come in the next level of this topic.
As you see two-digit numbers in the environment you could ask your child how many tens? How many ones in that number?
You could write down the numbers and check them out using objects when you get back.