Number words and numerals Phase 1
Page 9
Use the cards to play games,
for example:
• play in pairs
• put the cards in a bag
• take turns
• on your turn, decide whether the card you take out
will show ‘one’ or ‘lots’
• if your guess was right, you keep the card
Adapt the game – play as a group, cards spread on
the table, photos of specific numbers to match with
numerals, children sort the cards using own criteria
NW&N Phase 1
Page 10
play as a group
• someone takes things out of the box and places
them on the table to make a repeating pattern
• encourage everyone to watch and describe it
• ask questions, ‘Who thinks they can describe my
pattern?’, ‘Does anyone know what I’m going to put
next?’ ‘Can you continue the pattern?’
• encourage the others to continue the pattern
Adapt – make a display of patterns and use it as a
basis for discussion. Show wrapping paper, or borders
and ask them to describe what they see. Encourage
them to collect objects that show repeating patterns
NW&N Phase 2
Page 14 play as a group
• choose someone to put
their hands into the bag
and feel today’s special number
• encourage them to describe it so that everyone
else can guess what number it is
• talk together about the number
• what do we know about it?
• can anyone tell something about it?
• is there anything on the table that we can use
to show something about the number?
• can anyone put something on paper about the
number?
NW&N Phase 2
Gift bag number track
Page 17 play as a group
• place the numbered gift bags
in order discussing the numbers as you do it
• take it in turns to choose a picture/object from the
bag and discuss which gift bag it should go in.
• Continue choosing items from the bag and explain
to the rest of the group why you have put it a
particular bag.
Adapt the game – ask the children to look for further
items that could go in a particular numbered bag. Play
‘Swap’ asking children to spot which two bags have
been swapped. Play ‘Odd one out’ where a
picture/item could be moved into the wrong bag.
NW&N Phase 3
Page 22 play in pairs
• each person chooses three of the
digits on yellow card to make their
number plate
• put the white digit cards in a pile face down
• take turns to take a white digit card
• if it matches a number plate digit, place it on top
• winner is the first to cover all three digits
Adapt the game – make a 4 digit number, make a
larger ‘bingo card’, play as a barrier game – one person
makes a number that’s hidden, the other person
guesses the number by asking questions
NW&N Phase 3
Page 23
play as a group outside
• arrange the numbered bottles in order
• use the squeezy bottles to squirt a jet of
water to knock over the bottles
• identify which bottle you are aiming for
• create challenges – ‘ who can knock over bottle 2?’,
‘I wonder who can knock down bottle 5 without
knocking over the bottles next to it?’
Adapt – make the equipment available for children
to use in their play and provide large dice and timers
that children may wish to use
NW&N Phase 4
Page 30 play as a group
• everyone chooses a number card
from a pack 0-20
• help them to get into the right order, discuss the
numbers that are missing and read them together
forwards and backwards (you could whisper the
missing ones!)
• read the ‘sit down if…’ statements:
• your number comes just after the number twelve
• …is just before one
• …is between 17 and 19
• …has a five in it
• …is smaller than 8 etc…
Roll the furthest
NW&N Phase 4
Page 28
play as a group
• set up a slope so that there is a clear space for
objects to roll beyond it.
• choose 1 item each from the bag and predict
which item will roll the furthest using ordinal
language- Which will come first....second.... Why?
• test each item and then discuss the results using
ordinal language
Adapt – use flags to label each item; ask the
children to make their own flags using ordinal
numbers and ordinal words. Increase the number of
objects.
NW&N Phase 5
Page 38
play as a group
• using beads and a lace one person
makes a bracelet without anyone seeing it
then describes it so that everyone can make a
matching one – ‘The first bead in my bracelet is a
small orange cube – the second one is round, big
and green…’
• encourage children to make a bracelet following
criteria – ‘I want your fifth bead to be yellow and
your tenth to be red…’
Adapt – encourage children to copy other people’s
bracelets and make their own using repeating
patterns
NW&N Phase 5
Page 36 play as a group
• everyone stands in a circle
• talk together about the patterns in the
multiples of tens, asking appropriate questions and
giving prompts
• pass the teddy around the circle while counting in tens
• the person holding the teddy when the count reaches
100 sits down
• start again, continuing until only one person is
standing
Adapt – count beyond 100 to 200/300, start at a non
multiple of ten – 12 sitting down at first number over
100, count in twos or fives sitting down on 20 or 50
NW&N Phase 6
Page 43 play in pairs
• one person tries to build the tallest tower
they can while the other person watches
the timer (get the builder to predict how
many they will use)
• when timer runs out check how many bricks were used
• change roles
• play again but this time each block counts as 2, 5 or
10 points (builders predict the value of their tower)
• provide mark making materials for score keeping
Adapt – predict then count other actions that can be
performed for the duration of the timer
NW&N Phase 6
Page 42
play as a group
• one person chooses cards showing a sequence of
six numbers that go up or down in ones, twos, fives
or tens, without the others seeing the numbers
• set them out in a line on the table
• ask one person to turn over the first card
• ask everyone what number may be on the second
card and ‘why?’ and then get someone to turn it over
• continue the discussion as the other cards are
revealed. Repeat with different sequences perhaps
starting with a different card
Adapt – encourage children to make up their own
sequences – supply number tracks and 100 squares
Counting sets Phase 1
Page 50 play as a group
• place a hoop on the table/floor
• everyone chooses a sock and feels the
toe to decide how many objects are inside
• everyone tells the group what they can feel in the sock
• place socks containing only one object into the hoop
and place the others outside the hoop
Adapt – play in pairs
• choose another sock and decide how many things are
inside
• discuss whose sock has most things inside
• take the things out to check
• can they be put back into the socks with both having
the same number? If not, why not?
Counting Sets Phase 1
Page 50
play as a group
• put single objects in some socks and several objects
in others and put in a lucky dip box
• get everyone to choose a sock and describe what
they can feel
• take objects out of the socks and discuss them –
‘Did anyone’s sock contain less things than mine?’
‘Whose sock contained most things?’
Adapt – make the lucky dip box available for
children to use in their play. Encourage the children to
put favourite objects in the box.
Counting sets Phase 2
Page 56 play in pairs
• someone is chosen as leader
• they show everyone the set of objects and explains
that five of each have been hidden around the room
• in pairs try to find the objects and bring them to the
table
• after a minute the leader recalls everyone and leads
a discussion about what has been found
• have we found all of the stars yet?
• could we organise the objects to show clearly
what we have found so far?
• which object have we found most of?
•Continue the hunt
Adapt – change the number of objects
Counting sets Phase 2
One, two or three?
Page 56 play in pairs
• someone is chosen as leader
• they place a couple of cards on each plate so that
each plate contains a few images of 1, 2 or 3 items.
• in pairs try to work out how the leader has sorted the
pictures.
• place the number cards onto the correct plate
• each player then takes it in turns to choose a picture
from the bag and decides which plate to put it on.
Adapt – Find other objects around the room that
would go on a particular plate; Play ‘Odd one out’
where the leader moves one or more of the pictures
from one plate to another and the rest of the group
have to identify which items have been moved.
Counting sets Phase 3
Page 64 play in pairs
The farmer has four sheep and two fields.
He likes to give them a change everyday.
He wants to find different ways of putting the sheep in
two fields. Can you help him?
• how many ways of arranging the sheep can you find?
• can you put something on paper to show how you put
the sheep in the two fields?
Adapt – change the number of objects and use different
contexts such as shopping in baskets, fruit onto plates,
cars in garages, flowers into vases, pirates into ships…
•
Counting Sets Phase 3
Page 61
play as a group
• place objects in boxes so that two boxes
contain the same number of items but all the others
contain different numbers of items (up to 10)
• take turns to choose a box, shake it and describe
what you feel
• open boxes to see what is inside, counting the
objects
• ask questions, e.g. ‘Does anyone have the same
number as Sam?’
Adapt – encourage comparison – ‘How can we find
out whether there more in Amy’s or Ben’s box?’
Counting sets Phase 4
Page 68 play in pairs
• each player take a dish
• from the box choose ten interesting things
to place in your dish
• take turns to roll the dice and give the shown number
from your dish to your partner
• as you play, solve any problems that arise, such as not
having enough to give
• decide on the criteria for winning
Adapt – change the number of objects – e.g. five with a
1,1,2,2,3,3 dice, start with an empty plate and play until
one of you has ten on the plate, change the rules, play
as a group (dice moves one way, objects the other
Counting sets Phase 4
Red or white
Page 69 play in pairs
• each player takes ten counters
• one player drops all ten counters at once on a paper
plate
• they then estimate how many counters with the red
face showing they can see.
• their partner checks by counting
• repeat with estimating how many counters with the
white face showing they can see and then check
•Adapt – change the number of counters; keep the total
number of counters a secret so they don’t have a benchmark
for estimating; reveal how many counters there were in total
and tell the children how many counters had a red face
showing- work out how many had a white face showing.
Counting sets Phase 5
Page 78 play in pairs
• look at the arrangement of five spots on a dice
• take a piece of card and stick on five dots in an
arrangement different to the dice
• compare your cards and discuss similarities and
differences
• take the pack of cards and spread them out face
down on the table
• take turns to turn over two cards, if the cards show
the same number, keep them
• winner has most pairs of cards
Adapt – play as a group, or in pairs as a snap game,
both players turn over two cards- one with highest total
wins
Track back
Counting sets Phase 5
Page 80 play in pairs
• place the number cards in order and cover each
numeral with a counter except 0
• take it in turns to roll the dice and remove the shown
number of counters from the cards starting and 20 and
working backwards
• discuss how many covered numbers you have left.
• with that number, roll the dice and repeat
• the winner is the player who finishes with exactly 0
• predict how many you will have left before removing
the counters.
Adapt – one player closes their eyes and the other player
rolls the dice and removes the counters. The other player
then works out how many have been removed.
Counting sets Phase 6
Page 85 play in pairs
• both players take ten 1p coins from the box
• take turns to spin the spinner and do what it says,
counting on or back to find the new amount
• have five spins each
• whoever has the amount of money closest to 10p at
the end is the winner
•Adapt – change the numbers on the spinner and the
criterion for winning, start with coins including 2ps and
5ps, start with 5p and winner is the first with no money
left
Combining boxes
Counting sets Phase 6
Page 84 play as a group
• pick two boxes and check that the number
of objects inside matches the numeral on the box
• place the objects from two boxes together- how can we
work out what the total will be?
• count aloud as each item is dropped in each box to
check
• Write the total number on a label next to the two boxes
Adapt – give the children the total of two boxes and ask
them to work out what different boxes might add up to
that total. What are all the possibilities?