Decimal - Understanding Thousandths - Planning

In Year 6, students delve into the intricacies of decimals and percentages, with a particular focus on understanding thousandths. The lesson utilises resources such as Base Ten blocks and place value counters to provide a tactile learning experience, supported by worksheets and a presentation. Key vocabulary terms including 'decimal', 'place value', and 'thousandths' are introduced, with a website provided for further exploration of definitions. The lesson begins with a review of tenths and hundredths before proceeding to the concept of thousandths. Students watch a video to visualise how base ten blocks can represent numbers up to three decimal places and engage in partner discussions to deepen their comprehension of how thousandths relate to whole numbers and other decimal places.

Throughout the lesson, students are actively involved in constructing and deconstructing decimal numbers using Base Ten blocks, converting these to mixed numbers, and exploring the relative values of decimal places through place value charts. For example, they learn that one whole is equivalent to ten tenths, one tenth equals ten hundredths, and one hundredth is the same as ten thousandths. The lesson incorporates group work and independent activities where students apply reasoning to convert between decimals, fractions, and mixed numbers. To conclude, students reflect on what they've learnt, discussing the place value of digits in decimal figures to three decimal places, the conversion of decimals to mixed numbers, and the importance of concrete representations in understanding decimal concepts. Differentiated tasks cater to varying levels of proficiency, from fluency in basic decimal representation to greater depth in applying multiples of base ten for more complex decimal representations.