Numbers up to 10
By the end of this lesson a child says the numbers from 0 to 10 in order, knows that 0 means “nothing”, and can say which number comes next. This is the first lesson, before addition.
What the child can do at the end
- Say in order: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.
- For 6, say that 7 comes next and 5 comes before.
- Know that 0 apples means there are no apples.
What a number says
A number says how many things there are. One raised finger is 1. An empty hand is 0. Ten fingers on two hands is 10, and this lesson stops there.
- 0 — zero, nothing
- 1 — one
- 2 — two
- 3 — three
- 4 — four
- 5 — five
- 6 — six
- 7 — seven
- 8 — eight
- 9 — nine
- 10 — ten
One problem, step by step
There are 4 cubes on the table. How many are there?
- Touch one cube and say 1. Do not touch that cube again.
- Say 2 for the next, then 3, then 4.
- When the cubes run out, the last number said is the answer.
- The answer is 4. Check: move each cube aside as you count it, so the same one is not counted twice.
A common mistake
The child says 1, 2, 3, 5 and skips 4. Numbers go in the same order every time. If one is missing, stop and start again from 1.
The other mistake is counting the same cube twice, so four cubes become five. That is why a touched cube moves into a second pile.
Practice
- How many fingers are on one hand?
- Which number comes after 7?
- Which number comes before 3?
- How many is 0 apples?
- Say the numbers from 8 to 10.
Answers
- 5
- 8
- 2
- none
- 8, 9, 10
Say the zero problem out loud. Zero is not “the number that is missing”. Zero means the basket has nothing in it.
After the lesson
When the child counts to 10 without skipping, open the addition lesson. Addition only puts new things onto a number the child already knows.
For a parent
Count things the child can see: spoons, stairs, buttons. One sitting goes up to ten. If a number is skipped, do not patch only that number — start again from 1.