How to Teach Subitizing for Numbers 1-4

How to Teach Subitizing: 1 – 4

The comparison of numeracy to literacy is curious.

Learning math is the opposite of learning to read. When you read, usually simultaneous to learning a language, you sound out words and then put meaning to them. When you learn to count and do math, you know the meaning inherently and then put a language to it.

At some point we learn to recognize words without sounding them out. And at some point we learn to recognize quantities without counting them out. This is called subitizing.

The Your Baby Can Read program uses the concept of subitizing to teach reading – you show your baby the word alongside the object. So the shape of the word car is as recognizable as a car itself.

The children using Your Baby Can Read don’t learn to sound out words. They don’t understand the concept of letters any more than babies not using the program. But they instantly recognize the shapes of the words – giving them an (assumed) advantage.

Aside: We didn’t use the “Your Baby Can Read” program, not because it was gimmicky (I love anything that looks gimmicky), but because there is a huge DVD element to it. We decided not to put Daughter in front of the TV for her first 2 years. A decision we stuck with, but sometimes was a struggle! This article contains a “your baby can count” type program. (And it’s a free download!)

How did we learn subitizing?

I don’t recall having been taught it directly. Although I could be wrong. The research on it has been happening since the early 1900s, so it might have been taught without being labeled “subitzing.”In a previous article about why learning to subitize is important, Christine Guest commented that she learned it out of frustration for counting with chanting.I wonder how many of us do that. Are grownups so adept at subitizing that they forget that’s how we assess quantity? Maybe we’re taught to chant-count because that’s the way we think counting is.

How do you teach subitizing?

Images are accompanied by the written numeral as well as the number spoken aloud. The images would be printed on cards, done via video or “live” with 3D objects. I’m still working on the numbers 5-10 and up, but for the numbers 1-4, the following 8 styles of image sets would be done twice. Once using the same objects for each image set, and once using different objects for each image set.

1. Organized in a row vertically.
2. Organized in a row horizontally.
3. Organized in a row diagonally.
4. Organized in a row other way diagonally.
5. Organized in a regular shape (triangle, square).
6. Organized in a differently oriented regular shape.
7. Organized in an irregular shape.
8. Organized in a different irregular shape. (There will be more of these for 4 than 3, etc.)

The objects could be blocks, cars, little dolls, just about anything. I created the set below from blocks I found left in Daughter’s block set. Each zip file contains a few .jpg files with 4″ x 6″ pictures. You can print them at home or ship them to Walmart,Target, CVS, etc. for printing. I left off the MathFour.com logo so the kiddos wouldn’t get distracted. Please share them along with links back here.

• Subitizing with One
• Subitizing with Two
• Subitizing with Three
• Subitizing with Four

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Subitizing Digital Flash Cards

Click the image above to view the subitizing flash cards.  Use these with kindergarten and first grade students to help them with number sense.

Subitizing Plates

I know you may be thinking, "Well, duh, easy enough to make and no explanation needed." Well, that is true, BUT I made a little presentation on the plates that I hope you watch and enjoy! 

There you have it!! And this is not just a Kinder or 1st grade thing--it's never a bad thing to work on strengthening number sense! Go make some dot plates!! To help you out a little, I am including a page of suggested dot arrangements. Click the pic below to download your freebie!

 

Playdough Mats for Counting From 1-10

Here’s a cute little set of play dough mats for counting to 10! We have loved using these mats to practice our number skills! I love that they address so many skills, but it still feels like play.

These can be used to represent different stages of a tree as well. You can put ‘flowers’ on the tree like we did. Or you could put apples, peaches, pears, cherries… Anything you can think of. To prepare the pages simply print and laminate. Alternatively, you can slide the pages into page protectors. Rolling out the dough for form the numbers helps develop the fine-motor skills required for writing, in addition to teaching little ones number formation. Have them trace the letters with their finger or a dry erase crayon. Then, have them fill in the ten-frame to represent the same number. But most importantly, have fun!!

You can download your free play dough tree mats here!

Here are some other play dough mats that you might enjoy:

 

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Preschool: Play the Fish for Numbers Game!

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8 Games to Boost Preschool Math

3.5 based on 98 ratings

By Hannah Boyd

Updated on Aug 25, 2014

Is your child struggling with number recognition? Sometimes all it takes to learn something new is a little incentive – that’s business talk for, “turn it into a fun game and they’ll practice for hours.” Here's a great way to go fishing for numbers that will feel more like play than counting practice!

What You Need:

• Construction paper in various colors
• Scissors
• Hole punch
• Magnet
• Paper clips
• Dowel or Tinker Toy to form the handle of the fishing pole
• String to form the fishing line
• Super glue

What You Do:

1. Cut ten fish shapes, each about 6-inches long, out of the different colors of construction paper.
2. Write a different number from 1 to 10 on each fish.
3. Punch a hole in each one near the mouth area. Slide a paper clip through each hole to attach.
4. Tie the string to the dowel to make a fishing rod.
5. Use the super glue to adhere the magnet to the end of the string. Let it dry thoroughly.
6. To play: Scatter the fish so that the numbers are clearly visible. Tell your child, “I’m hungry for a number 4 fish!” and watch him hunt for it, then carefully lower the “rod” until the magnet catches the paper clip and he reels it in. Repeat with other numbers until all the fish are caught for a game that's so fun, it doesn't even feel like math practice!

Vary the game by using it to practice other things, too! Write letters on the fish to work on alphabet recognition, or put a sight word on each fish. Or, for some more advanced math practice, shout out a number and ask kids to fish for something "bigger" or "smaller."

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Preschool: Hidden Numbers

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3.9 based on 30 ratings

By Sue BradfordEdwards

Updated on Aug 6, 2013

Recognizing numbers is tough in part because written numbers take your preschooler into the world of abstract ideas. A 9 can stand for 9 balls, 9 apples or even 9 houses. In addition to the abstract ideas they represent, she still has to learn to tell the curving lines of an 8 from a 6 or a 3 and the straight line of a 1 from a 7. Turn this tough task into a game where observation pays off.

What You Need:

• 4 envelopes all of equal size, brown mailing envelopes work well
• 9 pieces of white paper cut to fit these envelopes
• A heavy, black marker
• Scissors
• Extra paper
• Pencil

What You Do:

1. Cut a window into the bottom left corner of the first envelope (see photo).
2. In the next envelope, cut a window in the bottom right corner. For the third, cut a window in the top right corner. For the fourth, cut a window in the top left corner.
3. Use the marker to write “Guess the Hidden Number” on each envelope.
4. Draw a large number on each piece of paper. Start with 1 and continue through 9. Be sure to position the 1 so that it will show through at least two of the windows.
5. Randomly sort your pile of numbered pages so that you won’t be working from 1 through 9. 
6. Slip one of the numbers into one of the envelopes.
7. Show it to your child. Can she tell you what number it is? Be prepared to discuss what your child can see through the window. A horizontal line in the top right window can belong to a 5 or a 7.
8. Give your child a piece of paper and the pencil. Help her draw a grid of four squares and have her copy what she sees through the envelope window into the appropriate square.
9. Now slip the number into another one of the envelopes. This will give your child a different view. Again, have her draw what she sees. What number does she think it is now?

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Preschool: Number Leap Frog

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4.1 based on 12 ratings

By ChristianMiller

Updated on Jul 11, 2013

This leap frog game is the perfect way to exercise growing muscle and will also help your child learn her numbers. Balance and coordination will also be put to the test as she makes her way from number to number.

What You Need:

• 20 sheets of varying color of construction paper 
• 1 black marker

What You Do:

1. Help your child set out the sheets of construction paper on a flat surface.
2. Then, using the black marker, let your child draw a number on each card (the numbers 1-20, one per card).
3. Next, help her place the cards on the ground in a line, about a foot apart. You could do variations such as placing the cards counting up, counting down, even numbers, or odd numbers.
4. To play the game, your child should stand at one end of the number line.
5. Call out, “HOP.”
6. Encourage your child to hop onto the nearest lily pad and call out the number.
7. She wins when she makes it to the end of the line, having successfully called out all of the numbers.

Number Leap Frog is a great wath to build a strong math foundation for future learning. Not to mention it's a silly and fun way to get lots of exercise and keep those minds and bodies active! 

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Exploring Technology in the Elementary Classroom

Time Math by Recession Apps LLC

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            Time Math is targeted to children in the second grade.  I could see this app used for students beyond second grade if they were still struggling with telling time.  This app is free and can easily be found on the app store for Apple products.  The specific math area of this app is the concept of time.  This app provides five different levels that can be explored.  The first level provides information on how to tell time.  The user learns what the hour and minute hands are used for.  The next level consists of asking the user “What time is it?”  The user then has the choice to select the intervals that will be asked.  These include: easy (hours), medium (fifteen minutes), hard (five minutes), harder (hours and five minutes), and hardest (hours and minutes).  The user is asked this each time they select one of the four levels.  The app generates a clock with a set time in relation to the difficulty selected and the user is asked to pick the correct answer out of three options.  The next level is “Set the Time” and asks the user to drag the hour and minute hand on the clock to the time that is indicated.  The last two levels are “What time will it be?” and “What time was it?”  Both of these levels require students to drag the hour and minute hand around the clock to reach the requested time. The graphics and design of this app is aesthetically pleasing.  The app is also very easy to navigate and allows for some many different difficulty levels, which is great for users who are just being introduced to telling time all the way through students who are more advanced.  When teaching a lesson about time, I think having this app projected on the board and/or giving each student an iPad to use with this app would be a great way to demonstrate time and walk through some problems together.  Instead of doing a worksheet, students could spend some time going through problems on their own. 

Academic Skill Builders http://www.arcademics.com/games/

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            Academic Skill Builders is a free website with a plethora of fun math games.  The great thing about this website is that the user can select whatever grade level and subject they would like.  The grades range from first to sixth and the subject levels include shapes, counting, addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, integers, money, time, decimals, fractions, ration and proportion, and algebra.  Therefore, this website is great for all elementary students.  For the most part, the grade levels are on point.  This website appears to be set up to allow students the chance to practice math skills through fun and competitive games.  Parents, teachers, and administrators can also be at ease when having students online because the designers of this website were conscious about online safety. “Private” games can be set up with a password, so a student and his or her friends could organize games to play against each other in a private game.  “Public” games can be joined by anyone at anytime but there is no contact between the outside players and the student. The website also monitors player names and blocks inappropriate ones.  One of my favorite games I stumbled across while exploring this website was Jumping Chicks.  This game would be perfect for kindergarten and first grade students because the purpose of the game is to match the number to a pile of leaves that has the same number.  Your chick then jumps to that pile of leaves and the player is asked to complete the same steps again to keep your chick moving forward.  This is a fun and easy way to practice counting from one to ten. If ever in the computer lab or near computers and students finish their work before others, this would be a great website to have students visit until everyone was completed.  Having a math station in the classroom could also promote the use of this website.  Students would be able to select this math website, as opposed to a math worksheet, and have fun while still practicing their math skills.  This website, and the other website and apps I chose, provide visual learners with engaging animations to look at and allows game-based learning in a fun and interactive way.

Funbrain Math Arcade http://www.funbrain.com/brain/MathBrain/MathBrain.html

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            Funbrain Math Arcade is intended for students in grades one to eight; however, after playing through this game at multiple grade levels, I feel that this game should really only be applicable for students in third grade and higher.  The reason I say this is because I do not think that students in second grade or below would have the proper hand-eye coordination and reading skills that are necessary for this game.  I had a hard time doing it myself so I have a feeling that very young students would struggle with the ability to select the right answer and figuring out how the game works.  Regardless, this website is great because it allows students to play in the format of a board game and has 25 different math games for them to play.  I think this would be great to use as a mini math activity maybe once a week.  Students could login with their saved password and complete five rolls on the game board, which means five games.  I would guess this would take around fifteen minutes. Depending on the grade level entered, the games ask students to add, match, adjust height and distance, subtract, multiply, divide, etc. A few things that I wish could be changed about this game is that the levels do not provide a lot of feedback for students who struggle and may need assistance or a hint.  However, the student is allowed to start that game level again after so many attempts.  I do like that the each game is fairly short and keeps the student motivated to win and unlock the next game.  Each game level also provides so much variety that could be tied into lessons.  For instance, one game level takes place inside a pyramid tomb and has images of Egyptian sarcophagi.  This could tie in nicely with a geography and social studies lesson on Ancient Egypt, as well as, reading aloud or independently reading books about mummies, pharaohs and pyramids.  There are a lot of options for using this website within the classroom. 

Todo Math by Enuma Inc.

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This free app is by far the best math app I came across.  I love this app because the logistics and layout are fantastic.  Additionally, this app is perfect for student just beginning math, as well as for students who are up to second grade.  This app covers many specific math areas, such as: counting and cardinality, number operations, mathematical reasoning, time and money, and geometry.  The intended purpose of this app is to allow students to trace numbers and shapes, practice patterning, subtraction, adding, multiplying, and so much more.  I think the number and shape tracing is a great addition to this app; it’s probably my favorite part about the app because it would be such a huge help for students who are just learning how to write their numbers and drawing their basic shapes. I can easily see this app being used within the classroom because of all the great features it has.  The teacher could demonstrate how to use the app and then the students could follow along and complete each number and shape together.  A lot of the levels seem to follow the same order; therefore, it would be easy to have the teacher and young students complete the lower levels together to make sure that every student understands the process and the content.  This app seems like such a great tool to use because of the way it asks students to select the numbers and then draw them as well.  I feel like it reinforces their learning and knowledge. One downfall to this app is that although it says it is free, there are limited levels that can be played on the free version and buying this app is incredibly expensive.  However, I could justify buying this app for $24 each because it is so comprehensive and of high quality.  It also changes displays according to the seasons, which is cute, but could also be integrated into learning the new season each time it changed.  Lastly, this app was built with the classroom in mind.  If teachers do not have the budget to buy Todo Math, teachers may qualify for the school year’s Todo Math Grant Program.  Additionally, this app has a web-based teacher dashboard that tracks progress, students can play Todo Math at home on parents' iPhone or iPad and their progress is synched to your teacher dashboard, and school level management allows for supporting device sharing between classrooms (cart system) and multi-teacher management of school account. 

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