If you’re thinking about…

• summer
• high-interest activities
• addressing learning loss
• or hands-on engagement

Then, I’ve got a plethora of ways to help meet your instructional needs that will grab your students’ attention.

Whether you need to develop conceptual understanding or focus on practice and review, I have a resource to address it.

Free Resources for Teaching 3 Digit Numbers

Get started by looking through these links for ideas and free resources.

One Free and Refreshing Place Value Activity (2 and 3 digit numbers)

Here’s a free activity to bolster your first, second, and third graders’ understanding of place value concepts. Help students make explicit connections between the standard, expanded, and word forms of two or three-digit numbers using a fun popsicle theme.

One Free Sensational Way to Compare Numbers

Try this free activity to teach, practice, or review comparing three-digit numbers at a concrete, representational, or abstract level. Use this sunglasses-themed resource year-round whenever your students are comparing numbers!

How to Teach 100 Less and More

Use this free animal camouflage-themed activity to target learning at the concrete, representational, and/ or abstract level. Direct your instruction to one level or overlap two levels. Make learning accessible for all your students!

How to Expand Your Kids’ Counting Skills

I created these free, easy-to-prepare Forest Animal Prompt Cards to implement as part of your classroom 3 digit number counting routines. You can use these with the whole class, in small groups, or in an independent math center. All you need is a few minutes here and there.

A New Product to Practice and Review 3 Digit Numbers

Keep going with my newest resource, Fin-tastic Numbers.

Do sharks fascinate your students? Go ahead and snag their interest with this small group math activity, designed for practicing and reviewing 3 digit number skills in second or third grade.

With this flexible resource, you can choose the skills that best match your students’ instructional needs. You’ll also have a choice of color or black/ white.

You’ll find 6 printable activity mats. Each mat has 10 three-digit numerals, with a total of 24 different ones.

There are ten sets of 24 cards, including a set with just the numerals.

The skills covered are:

• the number after and the number before
• 10 more and 10 less than
• 100 more and 100 less than
• number word
• expanded form
• how many hundreds, tens, and ones

Your students will:

• Take turns to pick a card.
• Read the card and determine the corresponding number.
• Cover or color the fin with that number.

Who can color or cover all their numbers first?

Extend the use of the skill and number cards with the additional matching activities or the open-ended worksheets that are included with this resource.

Click on the highlighted words to find out more about Fin-Tastic Numbers- A Shark-Themed 3 Digit Activity, available for purchase in my TpT store.

While you’re there, check out my Collect Them All Bundle of Task Cards for Second Grade Number Skills.

Free Worksheets for Practice and Review

Finish up with this new set of shark-themed free worksheets, perfect for practicing and reviewing 3 digit number skills.

This freebie includes 3 print and go worksheets.

1. Write the numbers that are 1, 10, and 100 more and less than the given number.
2. Round given numbers to the nearest 10 and nearest 100.
3. Complete a quick draw using squares, lines, and dots to represent the hundreds, tens, and ones in a given number. Then, write the number word and the expanded form of that number. (Two choices for writing lines.)

Download your free copy of Fin-tastic Number Worksheets by clicking on the highlighted words.

Did you find what you needed to teach 3 digit numbers? Let me know in the comments below!

Photo in title image by Ramon Carreterro.

The post How to Easily Sharpen Skills for 3 Digit Numbers appeared first on Just Ask Judy.

In my last blog post, I suggested a vertical number line as one way to help your students connect numerals to number words.

Unfortunately, the only ones I had handy to show you were ones to 12 or 20 that I used to teach addition and subtraction strategies.

Eventually, I located the 0 to 100, floor to ceiling, vertical number line I made for my classroom on an old thumb drive. Then it was easy to create a new and improved free version for you based on the old template.

Still wondering about the benefits…

Vertical number lines can help your kindergarten, first, and second-grade students:

1. visualize the pattern of increasing tens and ones in two-digit numbers. They can easily see the sequence and repetition of the digits.
2. understand the value of numbers faster and easier. They are able to see the numbers increasing or decreasing in value. 24 is lower or less than 25 and 48 is higher or more than 38.
3. grasp the concepts of counting up and counting down when adding or subtracting. It is evident that sums increase and differences decrease in value.
4. make a connection between the terms rounding up and rounding down to the nearest ten to what they see.

While I taught rounding with a number line, I never thought to use a vertical one, even with it right there on the wall!

You can also create empty and interactive vertical number lines.

How to Prepare Your Vertical Number Line

Of course, this is technically a number path and not a number line. A number path is an effective counting model as opposed to a length model. Each number is clearly marked with a rectangle. Each rectangle can be counted.

I added stars in rectangles to make counting even easier. The stars are also color-coded for counting by 5’s and 10’s.

This number path is approximately 93 3/8 inches or 7 foot 9 3/8 inches tall.

• Start by choosing color or black/ gray/ white.
• Print the selected pages. Use cardstock and laminate (consider glare) for durability.
• Cut each strip carefully along the outside edge of the solid and dotted black lines.
• Put the strips together with tape. Start with zero and one. Place tape in the blank spaces. Align and overlap the ends of each strip, covering up each blank box.
• Or you can create one that folds up accordion-style for storage. To do this, cut off the empty boxes. Lay the strips face down so the ends abut. Then, tape across the edges.

Now you’re all set to post it on your wall!

More Ideas for Vertical Number Lines

Find ideas and resources for using an interactive vertical number line to develop number sense (Mr. Elementary Math) and using vertical number lines for adding multiples of tens (What I Have Learned).

Looking for More Resources…

• Frog Hopping Count Down (blog post with a freebie that includes a vertical number line to 12)
• Piggy Bank Count Up (a resource to purchase with a vertical number line to 20)
• Candy Bag Count Up (same as above with a different theme)

Click the highlighted words to download your free copy of the vertical number line 0-100.

I’d love to hear your ideas for using vertical number lines in the comments below!

Photo in title image by Coffee Beans and Children’s Dreams.

The post 4 Beneficial Reasons for Using a Vertical Number Line appeared first on Just Ask Judy.

To help you with that December challenge, I have two new number activities featuring stockings (including a freebie) to share with you.

Stockings in Order 0-120

Are you looking for an engaging activity for sequencing the numbers 0 – 120? This Christmas-themed resource will give your students plenty of practice with ordering consecutive and non-consecutive numbers and with counting by 2’s, 5’s, and 10’s to 120.

Use this whimsical resource for Google Slides^TM to provide individualized practice or review for your kindergarten, first, and second-grade students. Try it as a math center or as a virtual assignment.

Those rascals, Cat and Dog have mixed up all the stockings. Your students will need to drag and drop to reorder them.

Cat and Dog also forgot to finish the count by sequences. Your students will need to be able to click on a question mark in a text box, delete the question mark (but not the text box), and type in a number.

Your students will practice ordering:

• Consecutive Numbers 0-10
• Non-Consecutive Numbers 0-10
• Consecutive Numbers 7-20
• Non-Consecutive Numbers 11-20
• Non-Consecutive Numbers 0-20
• Consecutive Numbers Within a Decade 21-120
• Consecutive Numbers Across a Decade 11-120
• Non-Consecutive Numbers Within a Decade 21-120
• Non-Consecutive Numbers 21-120
• Count By 10’s to 120
• 5’s to 120
• 2’s to 20
• 2’s to 120
• Count by 10’s Off the Decade

Choose one set for all your students or choose different sets for individual students. Use as a one-time assignment or multiple assignments across time.

You can delete, copy, and rearrange the slides to meet your needs.

Skip on over to my TpT store to take a closer look at Stockings in Order 0-120.

Not sure if your students can drag and drop or delete and type? Check out these Try It Before You Buy It slides. Be sure they are the right choice for you, your learning platform, your students, and their devices!

I also offer a similar print resource, Christmas Lights in Order 0-120, which is very popular this time of year.

Hang the Stockings- Comparing Two or Three-Digit Numbers

You’ll love this free and easy to prepare greater than and less than Christmas math activity. Your first, second, and third-grade students will have fun while getting practice with comparing two or three-digit numbers against a benchmark number.

Choose two-digit or three-digit numbers.

Your students will need:

• one page with two fireplaces and one set of stockings
• crayons
• scissors
• glue
• optional construction paper (9″ x 12″ or 6″ x 18″)

Your students will:

• Color the fireplaces.
• Cut the page in half on the dotted line.
• Glue the fireplaces onto construction paper (optional).
• Color the stockings.
• Cut them out.
• Sort them by numbers less than or greater than 55 or 550.
• Hang the stockings on the correct fireplace.
• Glue them in place.

You will:

• Sit back and relax with your favorite hot beverage.
• Enjoy the quiet calm for a few moments.
• Use your students’ creations for an attractive holiday display!

To make it easier, I recommend students loosely cut around the stockings or cut them as rectangles.

Students may also glue the fireplaces in a notebook or simply keep the fireplace page intact.

Visit my TpT store to download your free copy of Hang the Stockings Comparing Numbers.

Curious About the Origins of Stockings…

I discovered this article, The Legend of the Christmas Stocking, in the Smithsonian Magazine. It’s an interesting read if you’re not familiar with the legend.

Looking For More Resources…

Check out these blog posts for more free number activities, perfect for the season.

• How to Easily Stuff a Little Learning into December (preschool and kindergarten numeral recognition)
• One Way to Keep ‘Em Busy This Holiday Season (rounding two and three-digit numbers)

Click on the categories below to see more resources in my TpT store.

• Christmas
• Numbers & Number Sense
• Numbers & Place Value
• For Use With Google Slides^TM

I’d love to hear about the kinds of activities you find are best to engage your wiggly, distracted students this time of year! Please share in the comments below.

Photos in images by Coffee Beans and Children’s Dreams and LiliGraphie.

The post How to Put a Little Festive Learning in Their Stockings appeared first on Just Ask Judy.

Photo by Snapshots and Smiles

Here’s a free activity that you can use to teach, practice, or review comparing three-digit numbers at a concrete, representational, or abstract level. That makes it ideal to implement with your resource, intervention, or guided math groups, as well as an independent center.

We might consider sunglasses to be just a summery theme. National Sunglasses Day is even celebrated annually on June 27th. With a tad of research, I discovered it is a day to encourage you to wear your sunglasses all year long! The Vision Council sponsors this day to stress the importance of preventing UV-related eye damage.

Just pointing it out, you can use this resource year-round whenever your students are comparing numbers!

A Tool for Comparing Numbers at the Concrete Level

This three-digit number resource includes a themed comparison mat. Choose a sunglasses number card. Use the mat and base ten blocks to model how to build each number and compare. Let students in a small instructional group each pick a sunglasses number card. Provide the opportunity for guided practice.

Tools for Comparing Numbers at the Representational Level

When students demonstrate understanding at the concrete level, they can draw or color base ten blocks to represent each number. Draw squares, lines, and dots to represent hundreds, tens, and ones. Students who find this difficult can color the blocks.

An Engaging Activity at the Abstract Level

You can use this resource as an independent math center in several ways. For the easiest preparation, give students a set of sunglasses number cards and recording sheets. They simply pick a card and record the answer. Repeat until finished or the allotted time is up.

To increase engagement, set this up as a roam the room activity. Post the sunglasses number cards in various locations (walls, cabinets, bookcases, desks, etc.) around the classroom. Copy a recording sheet for each student. Provide each student with a clipboard. Students match the letter on the card to the letter on their paper to complete the task. 

If you have a class with 18 or fewer students, they can play Scoot with these cards. Find detailed directions from Rhodes University by clicking on the highlighted word.

How to Prepare “Sunsational” Comparisons

• Choose the color or black/ gray/ white option.
• Decide how you will use this resource with your students and the materials needed.
• Print the sunglasses number cards. Use card stock and laminate for durability. Cut as rectangles or sunglasses.
• The comparison mat is on two pages. Print on card stock and laminate. Trim the right side of the first page and the left side of the second page along the background. Then, place the pages face side down so the trimmed edges abut. Tape along the seam. Fold to store. Make one copy for a small group to share or multiple copies for individual students.
• Print copies of the draw and compare and/ or color and compare sheets. These can be laminated or used with dry erase pockets and dry erase markers or crayons to save paper.
• Make one copy of the recording sheet for each student.

Click on the highlighted words to download your free copy of “Sunsational” Comparisons Color Version or “Sunsational” Comparisons Black and White Version.

Be sure to share how you used this idea for comparing numbers in the comments below!

Do your learners need help with using the symbols for comparison? Stories by Storie has a helpful tip. Read a similar post by the Math Coach’s Corner.

Looking for more resources for comparing three-digit numbers?

Head on over to TpT to check out my Rainforest Animals Comparing Three-Digit Numbers Task Card Activity, a recent addition to my Collect Them All series. Try this appealing task card activity with a twist!

Check back soon for more three-digit number resources!

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The post One Free Sensational Way to Compare Numbers appeared first on Just Ask Judy.