This is a ten frame, and you can make this for your Kindergartener in a flash!
Counting needs to be touched and numbers need to be visual. A ten frame is how kids can conceptualize what the number ten means.
Simply put, we cannot learn what a group of ten means from a worksheet. But we can deepen our understanding of number sense with a little painter’s tape and a deck of cards.
It is a simple setup and a lot of fun.
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What is a ten frame?
A ten frame is a group of ten boxes total that allow children to understand better what a group of ten looks like.
It has five boxes on top and five boxes on the bottom.
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How do ten frames help students?
To better understand numbers 11-20, we must first see that the digit in the tens place represents ten ones.
For example:
- Number 14 has ONE GROUP OF TEN and four ones.
- The number 16 has ONE GROUP OF TEN and six ones.
- Number 20 has TWO GROUPS OF TEN and zero ones.
Placing objects into a ten frame is a great visual for young learners to better understand that the one actually represents ONE GROUP OF TEN. Kindergarten activities such as this help your child better understand numbers.
How do you make a ten frame?
It’s simple!
I grabbed my painter’s tape and began to make my ten frame.
Next, we added our counting bears and some sticky notes to begin exploring the numbers 11-20.
Keep in mind that my Kindergartener has spent a lot of time with numbers under ten. Counting activities he has played:
Spend some time with numbers under ten to build the foundation of what ten looks like and how it can be broken into smaller groups.
Supplies:
Let’s play this ten frame, hands-on math, activity!
My six-year-old placed all of the bears into his ten frame so that he could see the complete group of ten.
Next, he took a sticky note and made that number.
After the number was made the bears, he touched the ten frame to say, “TEN” and counted on from there.
The number 15 would sound like this:
TEN. 11, 12, 13, 14, 15.
A ten frame is simple to make, and is a significant part of better understanding what numbers 11-20 truly mean.
Let’s make this ten frame for our Kindergarteners today!
