Reflection on practice-Number Sense

I strongly agree with the NCTM Standards that “As students work with numbers, they gradually develop flexibility in thinking about numbers, which is a hallmark of number sense…. Number sense develops as students understand the size of numbers, develop multiple ways of thinking about and representing numbers, use numbers as referents, and develop accurate perceptions about the effects of operations on numbers” (p.80).

In my centre, our Mathematics curriculum touches on the following:

1) Number sense – counting, recongintion of numbers, more and less,
adding and subtracting, ordinal numbers, number patterns, grouping,
sharing
2) part-part-whole
3) More than/Less than
4) patterning set recognition

 

Depending on the children’s level of understanding, the class teacher will reinforce the topic until most children have grasp the concept as after every topic, the teacher has to assess the children. Teachers are always reminded to provide more hands-on activities and practices related when they teach a particular concept. It relates to what we have learned in class about Jerome Bruner’s “CPA Approach” as the Nursery children are learning Mathematics concept through songs, rhymes, books as well as concrete materials. They learn by manipulating with concrete materials and do not have worksheets to do whereas for the  Kindergarten children, they move from concrete materials, pictorial to abstract.

I think that the concept of anchoring numbers to 5 and 10 is not a common topic found in some Preschool Mathematics Curriculum and apart from that, not many preschool centres encourage the use of calculators in teaching numeracy and many still stick to the traditional method by teaching children to add by doing ‘finger counting’.

In my centre, the K2 children are taught on the use of Doubles (count in twos, fives, tens) and immediately after children have learned numbers 1 to 20, a lot of emphasis is place on adding and subtracting numbers within 20. However, the Mathematics Curriculum did not focus much on place value as well as estimation. In Chapter 8 of the textbook, there are many examples of hands-on activities for me to refer to when I need to teach numbers. However, there is a need for me to slowly modify or invent my own activities for the children under my care so that they could enjoy the process when learning about numbers.

It is said that we should not introducing symbols (“+”, “-“ etc) to preschoolers, however, I think that most centre are doing so. So, when is the best time to introduce the symbol to them?

The activities that are not common practice in pre-school:

1) Doubles and near-doubles

2) Anchoring numbers to 5 and 10

3) Usage of calculator

Learning the concept of place value using base ten materials

Children using cubes to do addition