Sample teaching article · Practical ideas to adapt to your classroom.
Make the number visible
Place value can begin with objects children can count and regroup. Use smooth sticks or large paper strips: ten loose pieces form one bundle of ten. Prepare a mat with columns for hundreds, tens and ones. Keep the materials manageable and count a bundle together before starting.
Build two-digit numbers first
Ask a pair to show 24 using two bundles and four loose pieces. One learner builds the number and the other checks it. Ask how many tens and ones they can see. Write 24 beside the model, then connect the written digits with their positions on the mat.
Explore the same digits in different positions
Build 42 beside 24. Ask: Are these numbers equal? Which is greater? How do you know? Encourage children to explain using the bundles. The digits are the same, but their positions change the values. Let children create another pair such as 35 and 53.
Introduce exchanging
Give children one bundle of ten and ask them to exchange it for ten loose pieces. The total stays the same. Use this exchange to show that 24 can also be represented as one ten and fourteen ones. Keep the standard form clear while discussing these alternative representations.
Move to hundreds when learners are ready
Group ten tens as one hundred, or use a clearly labelled hundred card alongside bundles. Show 243 as two hundreds, four tens and three ones. Include examples with zero, such as 205, and ask why the tens column is empty even though the number has three digits.
Check understanding
Ask each child to build a number, draw a simple model and write its expanded form. For 243, this is 200 + 40 + 3. If a learner counts every loose piece but cannot identify a ten, return to bundling. Use their explanations to choose the next task.
Related classroom resources
- Class 2 Mathematics: Addition Doubles 10–20 — A4 Worksheet
- ଶ୍ରେଣୀ ୨ ଗଣିତ: ଯୋଗ ଅଭ୍ୟାସ — Odia Mathematics A4 Worksheet
- Five Low-Cost TLM Ideas for Primary Classrooms
Browse free worksheets · Explore teaching articles
Useful for another teacher or parent?