Category: Counting

Posted in Christmas, Counting, Mathematical language

How many?

Posted on by Digit Dog
Design by Cordelia Hutchinson Ling Design produced for National Trust www.nationaltrust.org.uk

Look at the card and see what you can count.

How many cats are smiling? How many are not?

How many cats are not wearing hats?

How many cats have stripes?

How many more cats have hats than have scarves?

How many fewer scarves are there than hats?

How many legs? How did you count them? Did you count in 2s or 4s?

How many eyes? Ears? Whiskers?

How many holly leaves?

How many more hats do they need so that all the cats are wearing one?

Make up some word problems

Ten cats are coming to the party, how many haven’t arrived yet?

At the beginning of the day there were 8 cats, how many have gone home?

Some cats were playing in the snow, 4 cats ran away and now only 6 are left. How many were there to start with?

Write some number sentences to go with the picture.

6 = 4 + 2 There are six cats altogether. Four cats standing plus 2 that are not.

6 = 1 + 5 There are 6 cats altogether. 1 cat holding holly and 5 not or 1 cat sleeping and 5 awake.

What if……..?

What if Calculating Cat joined in? How many cats would there be then?

What if 3 cats ran away? How many would be left?

What if two more cats fell asleep? How many would then be sleeping?

What if two more cats put on a scarf?

Posted in Counting, Games, Number sense, Subitising

Counting with Digit Dog

Posted on by Digit Dog

Digit Dog and Calculating Cat have been practising their counting. Play their game by downloading it here.

If you want more ideas like this then book onto Mathematics and Numeracy in PS1 (Nursery and Reception) on October 13th 2021.

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You need one counter and a dice (a dice with numbers 1, 2 and 3 is ideal but you can play with an ordinary 1 – 6 dice)

The game is for 2 players – one will be Digit Dog and the other will be Calculating Cat.

Put the counter on Start. Both players move the same counter BUT Digit Dog moves towards the bone and Calculating Cat moves towards the fish. Take turns to throw the dice and see who gets their food first. There will be a lot of moving back and fro.

When children throw the dice ask them to say how many spots there are without counting in ones – this is called subitising.

If you enjoyed the game why not try the Incey Wincey Spider game from www.nrich.org

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Download drainpipes here.

Posted in Conceptual understanding, Counting, Mathematical language, Number sense, Subitising

Counting and comparing with Bottle Top Bugs

Posted on by Digit Dog

Count, order and compare with Bottle Top Bugs.

Digit Dog and Calculating Cat are playing Who has more?

To play the game you need:

A set of Bottle Top Bugs

A feely bag, box or cloth

Put your bottle top bugs in a feely bag or a box or under a cloth. Each player takes one bug out, puts it in front of them and says how many spots there are. The player with more spots captures both bugs.

Keep playing until all the bugs have been used. The winner is the player who has captured most bugs.

Ensure learners are using correct mathematical language.

Ask:

Who has more spots? Who has fewer spots?

Who has more? Who has less?

Say:

I have more spots. I have fewer spots.

I have more. I have less.

Make sure that learners practise using fewer/less as well as more.

Practise subitising (saying how many spots there are without counting in ones). Seeing patterns and arrangements of objects is an important skill that helps with rearranging, combining, breaking up and putting together amounts in number.

When you turn over a bug, say how many spots there are without counting in ones. How do you know how many spots there are? Calculating Cat knows she has 7 spots because she saw 5 plus 2 more.

Match the numeral

Say how many spots you have and find that number on a number line.

Say how many spots you have and find a digit card to match that amount.

Extend the game

Ask Who has more spots? How many more?

Who has fewer spots? How many fewer?

I have …..spots. I have ……. more spots than my friend.

I have …….. spots. I have …….. fewer spots than my friend.

Vary the game

  • Change the rules so that the player with fewer spots wins.
  • Players take two bugs and add the number of spots together. They then compare their totals. The player with the greater total captures all four bugs.
  • Players take two bugs and find the difference. They then compare their differences. The player with the greater difference captures the four bugs.

Posted in Counting, Mathematical language, Subitising

Exploring number with Bottle Top Bugs

Posted on by Digit Dog

How to make a set of Bottle Top Bugs.

Use the tops from plastic milk bottles.

Draw eyes and spots. Think about the patterns of spots – this arrangement focuses on the pattern of 5. The numbers above 6 are arranged as “5 and some more”.
The spots on these bugs are arranged to match the Numicon shape patterns.
These bugs have “goggly eyes” and the spots are divided into two so that number bonds can be explored.

Explore your bugs.

Ask:

What do you notice?

  • Find bugs with the same number of spots.
  • Count the spots and put the bugs in order.
  • Start to recognise patterns. Say how many spots there are without counting in ones.
  • Find the bug with 5 spots. Now find the one with one more than 5, one less than 5, two more/less than 5.
  • Find two bugs that have 8 spots altogether. Can you find another two with 8 spots? How many different pairs can you find? How do you know you have found them all?

Posted in Counting, Games, Number sense

Counting games

Posted on by Digit Dog

Digit Dog and Calculating Cat have been practising their counting skills by playing the Incey Wincey Spider  (Nursery and Reception) game (Year 1 and 2) from www.nrich.org

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Digit Dog and Calculating Cat enjoyed the game so much that they made their own version of the game.

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The game is for two players – one is Digit Dog, the other Calculating Cat.

You need:  One dice, one counter.

Digit Dog wants to get to the bone, Calculating Cat wants to get to the fish.

Put the counter on start.

Take turns to throw the dice and move the counter. Both players move the same counter – Digit Dog moves the counter towards the bone, Calculating Cat moves it towards the fish.

The winner is the one who gets to the food first.

Variations

Use two dice – throw the two dice and choose which dice you want to use.

Use two dice – add the numbers on the dice and use the total for your move.

Use two dice – find the difference between the numbers on the two dice and use the difference for your move.

Posted in Christmas, Counting, Mathematical language

Christmas wrapping counting

Posted on by Digit Dog

How many?

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Use a piece of Christmas wrapping paper and just ask the question “How many?”

At first, don’t specify what needs to be counted, let the question be open and the children come up with ideas and be creative.

I can count…….3 Santas, 3 elves, 3 snowmen.

You don’t need to stick to counting in ones……….I can count 32 eyes, that’s 16 groups of 2, 16 x 2 – true or false?

I can count 4 groups of 3 trees and 6 groups of 2 trees.

I can count 12 boots – I wonder how many people that is………..

What about this one? What will you count now?

 

How many stars can you see? How many holly leaves? How did you count them?

Describe what you can see.

I can see more…….than…………

I can see fewer …………than ……………..

Posted in Christmas, Counting, Fluency, Subitising

Counting with the Christmas flik-flak

Posted on by Digit Dog

Print your flik-flak onto A4 paper and laminate. Fold along the black lines and you’re ready to go.

In a large group:

Hold up the Digit Dog flik-flak and ask how many dogs can you see? You can show all the numbers from 0 to 10 by folding on the black lines. This allows children to practise counting sets of objects up to 10.

For example, you can fold the flik-flak like this:

Ask:

How many dogs can you see?

How many are there with red hats? How many with green hats?

What if there was one more dog? What if there was one less dog?

Show me with fingers how many dogs there are.

How many dogs? Do that number of jumps.

Once children can confidently count the dogs with 1:1 correspondence, encourage them to subitise i.e. to say how many dogs there are without counting in ones.

In a small group:

Give children individual flik-flaks and ask them show me questions. Use your questions to develop mathematical language and reasoning skills.

Use your flik-flak to show me:

  1. Single digit numbers – 1, 2, 3, 4 ……etc.
  2. The numbers 0 – 10 in order. How many ways can you show each number?
  3. The same number as I am showing.
  4. One less / one more than 3, than 4….. etc. How did you work it out? Can you do it without counting?
  5. More/fewer than I am showing. Explain your answer. Has everyone got the same answer? Can you give me another answer?

Posted in Calculating, Counting, Games, Subitising

Bottle Top Bugs – Who has more?

Posted on by Digit Dog

Who has more?

You need:

A set of Bottle Top Bugs

A feely bag / box or cloth

Put your bottle top bugs in a feely bag or a box or under a cloth. Each player takes one bug out, puts it in front of them and says how many spots there are. The player with more spots captures both bugs.

Who has more?

Keep playing until all the bugs have been used. The winner is the player who has  captured most bugs.

Ask:

Who has more spots? How many more?

Say:

I have ……. spots. I have ……. more spots than my friend.

Make sure that learners also practice using the word fewer.

Who has fewer spots? How many fewer?

I have …….. spots. I have …….. fewer spots than my friend.

Practise subitising (saying how many spots there are without counting in ones).

When you turn over a bug, say how many spots there are without counting in ones. How do you know how many spots there are? Calculating Cat knows she has 11 spots because she saw two groups of 5 plus 1.

Vary the game

Change the rules so that the player with fewer spots wins.

Players take two bugs and add the number of spots together. They then compare their totals. The player with the greater total captures all four bugs.

Players take two bugs and find the difference. They then compare their differences. The player with the greater / smaller difference captures the four bugs.

Posted in Counting, Mathematical language, Subitising

Bottle Top Bugs

Posted on by Digit Dog

Wondering what to do with the tops of plastic milk bottles?

Make a set of Bottle Top Bugs.

Draw eyes and spots. Think about the patterns of spots – this arrangement focuses on the pattern of 5. The numbers above 6 are arranged as “5 and some more”.
The spots on these bugs are arranged to match the Numicon shape patterns.
These bugs have “goggly eyes” and the spots are divided into two so that number bonds can be explored.

Look at your bugs.

Count the spots and put the bugs in order.

Try to say how many spots there are without counting in ones. Start to recognise patterns.

Find the Bug

Find the bug with 5 spots. Now find the one with one more than 5, one less than 5, two more/less than 5.

Find two bugs that have 8 spots altogether. Can you find another two with 8 spots? How many different pairs can you find? How do you know you have found them all?

COMING NEXT

More activities with Bottle Top Bugs.

Posted in Counting, Games

Play Go Fish

Posted on by Digit Dog

How to play Go Fish

For 2 – 3 players you need to print 4 sets of Digit Dog’s cards, onto card. The cards have numerals along with ten-frames.Screenshot 2020-06-29 08.58.52

The game can also be played with digit cards 0 – 10 or 0 – 20, or  a pack of playing cards.

To play:

Deal each player 7 cards and spread out the remaining cards face down on the table. The aim of the game is to find pairs of cards.

Each player takes a turn. During a turn the player:

  1. Looks at the cards in their hand, if they have any pairs, they put them in front of them, face up.
  2. They then ask another player if they have a particular card so that they can make another pair. For example, player 1 might ask player 2 “do you have a 5?” If player 2 has a 5 card, then they must give it to player 1. If they don’t have a 5 card, they say “go fish” and player 1 takes a card from the pool of cards on the table.
  3. If the player gets the card they asked for, either from the pool or from the other player, then they put their pair of cards in front of them, face up.

The game ends when one player runs out of cards or there are no more cards in the pool. The winner is the player with most pairs in front of them.

Posted in Counting, Number sense, Subitising, Ten frames

Ten frame games

Posted on by Digit Dog

1. Make the number

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You need:

For 3 – 5 players

Two sets of Digit Dog ten frames – large or small

Small objects such as pennies, buttons or counters.

To play:

One player is the leader and has the ten frame cards in a pile, face down.

Other players have a blank ten frame and ten small objects each.

The leader turns over the top card for a few seconds and then turns it back again.

Other players make the pattern they saw with objects on their ten frame.

The leader turns over the card again to check the patterns. Players who were correct score one point.

Play until all cards have been turned over, or one player reaches 10 points.

The winner is the player with most points.

Variations

  • Make the number on your ten frame one more than the number on the card.
  • Make the number on your ten frame two more than the number on the card.
  • Make the number on your ten frame one less than the number on the card.
  • Make the number on your ten frame two less than the number on the card.

 

2. Who has more?

 

Screenshot 2020-06-24 11.59.59

You need:

For 2 players

A set of Digit Dog ten frames for each player, in a pile face down.

To play:

On the count of 3, players turn over their top card. The player with more dogs wins the two cards and says “I have …….dogs. I have more dogs than you”. The other player says “I have ……. dogs. I have fewer dogs than you”.

The game ends when all cards have been turned over. The winner is the player with more cards.

Variation

  • The player with the fewer dogs wins the cards.
  • Say how many more and how many fewer dogs there are.Screenshot 2020-06-24 12.10.41
Posted in Counting, Number sense, Subitising, Ten frames

Ten frame flash

Posted on by Digit Dog

This game practises subitising (see June 24th Post)

Screenshot 2020-06-24 09.51.27

To play Ten Frame Flash you need:

A few sets of Digit Dog ten frame flash cards – large or small

To play:

Place the cards in a pile face down.

One player shows the top card and then turns it back again, the other players have to say how many dogs were on the card. The length of time that the card is revealed can get shorter as learners get better at recognising the patterns.

Encourage learners to recognise patterns and to work out the number without counting each dog.

How did you know how many there are? Explain your thinking.

Variations

  • For learners still practising counting accurately, turn over the cards and count each dog. Place an object on each dog and count the objects.
  • Use the five frame flash cards.
  • For a challenge: turn over the card, show the dogs and then hide them again. This time say one more than the number of dogs or one less than the number, e.g. if there were 4 dogs on the card, you would say “one more is 5” or “one less is 3”.

Try these on-line ten frame games:

https://gregtangmath.com/tenframemania

https://www.nctm.org/Classroom-Resources/Illuminations/Interactives/Ten-Frame/