Place value within 10 - Number lines - Planning

In a Year 1 maths lesson focused on place value within 10, the concept of the number line is introduced as a small step in the learning journey. The lesson is designed to help children practise and consolidate their understanding of counting, identifying one more or one less, and understanding greater than and less than through the use of number lines. A variety of resources are used, including differentiated worksheets, teaching slides, and concrete resources like base 10 blocks, counters, or number tracks. Key vocabulary such as 'number line', 'number', 'order', 'interval', 'one more', 'one less', 'greater', 'smaller', 'greatest', and 'smallest' is emphasised, with vocabulary cards and definitions available to support learning. The children engage in activities that require them to count forwards and backwards, place numbers on a number line, and discuss their reasoning in pairs.

The lesson progresses with activities that encourage children to become familiar with different representations of a number line and to use them for ordering numbers and understanding numerical relationships. Children are taught to strategically count from the nearest known number and to consider whether it is quicker to count forwards or backwards. They are also introduced to the concept of estimation when working with number lines that have larger intervals. The lesson includes reasoning and problem-solving tasks that further explore the use of number lines, including a game that involves moving in 'jumps'. Key questions guide the children to think critically about how to label a number line and where to place numbers. The lesson addresses common misconceptions, such as the assumption that each division on a number line represents 'one' and that number lines always start at 0 or 1. Differentiated outcomes are outlined for children working towards, at the expected level, and at greater depth, with the complexity of the tasks increasing at each level.