In the run up to Christmas, it can be hard to find time to fit everything in, and easy to just run off worksheets.

​While I have nothing against a good worksheet (if they aren't over-used), number cards are a great alternative. Click the picture to download differentiated number cards sets that will let your class easily practice whichever number operation they need to practice.

This file contains the following number cards sets:  1-12, 1-36, the standard 1-120 set and a further set of random numbers from 0-500 (I have a few kids who are ready to add and subtract with numbers beyond 120, so I created this set with them in mind).

​Each set has different coloured 'confetti' headers (like you see on the cover page above). I love number cards, but HATE when I have to try to put sets back together after I've split them up to differentiate for different kids. With these sets, they are already differentiated for you - and when clean up time comes, it's very easy to put all the cards with the same confetti back together again. Anything to make clean up easier, right?

​The confetti headers allow you to easily separate the cards into the right set, but they are easy on the colour ink, which is always a consideration for me (ink cartridges get expensive).

​Number cards can be used in many different ways, but to get you started, this file also includes simple recording sheets to let your class record their addition, subtraction, multiplication or division sums. I just put the right set of cards for each group of kids into a bucket on their table. Then the kids can pull 2 numbers out and do the required sum, before putting their cards back and drawing 2 more cards, etc.

​Only 3 weeks left until the Christmas break here in Aberdeen - hope you don't have too much longer than that where you are!



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I used 10 frames and double 10 frames all the time last year, when I was teaching P1. They are so useful in helping children to visualise numbers and combinations of numbers (e.g., 5 cubes in the top row and 3 in the bottom row makes 8 - which is 2 less than 10, because we need 2 more to fill in the whole 10 frame).

​I've recently pulled them out again to use when I'm working with a small group of kiddos who are finding our Number Talks quite challenging. The strategies being used by the other children in the class are hard for them to follow, even when I model what is happening using magnetic base 10 materials.

​So while the rest of the class was busy working on graphing, this small group and I pulled out our 10 frames and cubes and got to work. I used an early sequence of number talks (e.g. 3 + 3, then 3 + 4, then 3 + 5) - I got them to solve the equations mentally, and then check their answer using their 10 frame.

​They handled this well, so the next time, we worked on combinations for 10. We began with 5 + 5 (each child had 5 yellow cubes in a row, with 5 black cubes underneath). We then changed one black cube for a yellow cube at a time, until we'd found all of the 'friends of 10'. One of my little girls told me afterwards, 'This really helps me!'.

​They've been doing so well with the 10 frame support, that I wanted to move into slightly larger numbers. I know I had double 10 frame mats, but I think I loaned them to someone and they haven't been returned. Of course, with my organisational skills, it's quite possible that I've just misplaced them! I don't want to make false accusations, so I decided to just make new mats for myself. The ones I was using were Christmas-themed anyway, and I think I prefer these winter themed one - they are a bit more generic, so I won't feel silly still using them in January and February!

​Click on the picture above to download the file, if you think you might like to use these in your own class. And please do feel free to leave a comment with different ideas about how else these mats can be used!

Maths has been hectic this term, particularly since my pre-assessment results turned out to be wrong when I got kids into their new groups and tried to teach to what I assumed was the right level.

What I found was that while a lot of my kids could add and subtract when given a written assessment, they couldn't do the same sums mentally (or stretch to working with larger numbers) because many of them were relying on counting on their fingers (sigh).

So I've re-jigged the groups, and we've been working on different strategies for remember our number bonds (thinking about both addition and subtraction) to 10/20. Part of that has been working with the idea of missing numbers. I want the kids to be able to think about the way numbers are composed and decomposed so that they can find the missing number in a sum, even if the missing number isn't after the equals sign.

I have a lovely little Fishy Numbers pack from Math Coach's Corner, and I started off using her missing number task cards to play the 'Back and Forth' game. However, I found that they were a bit too tricky for my kids at the moment, as many of the sums are laid out differently (e.g., they are written as 5 = ____ - 3, rather than ____ - 3 = 5). While I think the different layout is great, and something I want my class to be able to handle eventually, jumping straight into problems written that way was too confusing.

So...I made some cards of my own, that I used this week with the Back and Forth game board from the Fishy Numbers pack. ​​​​The kids really enjoyed it, and they are starting to get the hang of how you find missing numbers in addition and subtraction problems, no matter which number it is that is missing. Yeah! We used Numicon as our concrete materials to help us figure out what our missing number was, although the 10 frames that are suggested in the post I linked to above would also work well.

To make sure that my kiddos are finding the right missing number, and aren't practising doing it wrong (!), I also made some 'Addition' and 'Subtraction' cards (see below): ​

I've cut these cards out and put them on a small ring. Each pair is given a ring. Then when they are playing their game, they have to check to see if their partner's answer is correct. If it isn't, the partner forfeits that turn. So far, it's been working well.

I thought these missing number cards, as well as the 'Check your Sums' cards might be useful to others as well, so you can get them here if you are interested. The Check your Sums addition goes up through 13, and the subtraction covers subtraction from 5 through 12. I'm planning to have my kids use these cards whenever they are playing addition and subtraction games - it's no use playing the games and having fun, but getting all of your sums wrong! ​​