Every 10 Eggs

Mar 22, 2024

Place value is a fundamental concept in number sense and a cornerstone of early math. Understanding 10 ones (or 1 ten) is a critical milestone in place value development as it forms the foundation for comprehending larger numbers. Here is a math warm up that will help with

counting to ten
adding smaller numbers to make ten (1, 2 and 3)
beginning to think about 10 ones as 1 ten

Every 10 Eggs - a math warm up or game

use the 123 cards and baskets from the Math Kit
flip the dot cards in a face down pile
on a students turn they flip cards and count to exactly 10
when 10 is reached they add an 'egg' (counter) to their basket
stop at 4 or 5 eggs (whatever you have time to allow)

making 10 and place value in kindergarten math

Why is Understanding 10 Ones Important?

Understanding 10 ones is essential for several reasons:

Building Number Sense:

it allows children to transition from counting individual objects to thinking about numbers in groups of 10
this lays the groundwork for more complex mathematical operations

Connecting Concrete and Abstract Representations:

Ten ones can be represented concretely using physical objects, such as the 'egg' in the basket
After the game have students record their eggs as tens in their math journal - e.g. I have 3 tens in my basket. 3 tens is 30.
Your children will begin to grasp the relationship between quantities and their numerical representation.

Composing and Decomposing Numbers:

Understanding 10 ones enables children to compose and decompose numbers.
They can compose numbers by grouping 10 ones into tens, and decompose numbers by breaking tens back into 10 ones. This skill is crucial for addition, subtraction, and mental math strategies.
To extend this activity, have students shuffle their pile of used cards and play again, this time removing a '10 egg' each time they count ten dots.