Today you will need up to 20 small items, such as small Lego cubes, raisins, pieces of dry pasta, small toy animals or small figures. You will also need number cards with numbers 0-20 (from home learning pack, or ones you have home made).
Start by watching the ‘Numberblocks’ count to 20. Follow this link to the BBC iplayer to watch it.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m0006s5q/numberblocks-series-4-14-i-can-count-to-twenty
Ask your child to lay out their number cards to 20 in order. Ask them to use their ‘magic pointy finger’ to point to specific numbers.
They children love it if you use silly voices or have them point to a small number immediately followed by a big number so their finger is moving all over the number line quickly. I also ask them to use their finger to point to numbers in a sequence but then quickly change it to try and catch them out. They will have automatically pointed to what they think will be the next number! For example, I might ask them to point to numbers 13,14,15,16 and pause, at this point they will point to 17, but I will go back down and ask them to point to numbers 15,14,13.
This game can be changed so the children say the numbers and you have to point at the number line. Deliberately get some wrong by pointing to an incorrect number. Do they notice?
Another way to adapt the game is by you pointing to the numbers and the children have to say what number it is. Again move your finger quickly up and down the number line, jumping all over the place so that the children really have to look and concentrate on where you are pointing.
These games familiarise the children with numerals to 20 and the sequence of numbers to 20.
Using the small items, ask the children to grab a handful. Ask them to count how many items they have. Can they find and point to that number on the number line? Ask them how many items they would have if you gave them 1 more. Show this by using your finger and jumping it 1 more number along the line (similar to Tuesday’s Maths work). Give your child 1 more item and ask them to count how many they have now to check they were right.
Repeat this a number of times, each time asking your child to grab a handful of items, count them, point to the corresponding number and then add one more by using the number line. Give them 1 more item to add and then count to check.
Cheeky Challenge!!! If your child is confident adding 1 more using the number line, challenge them by asking them to count a handful of items and find the number as before, but then ask how many they would have if you gave them 2 more or 3 more. Encourage them to use their finger to jump along the number line and then actually give them 2 or 3 more items and ask them to check by counting.
