Base Ten Blocks With Decimals

How to Introduce Decimals with Base of operations Ten Blocks

In that location'southward a reason math teachers starting time the yr by introducing or reviewing place value concepts. Understanding place value is essential to developing a solid foundation of mathematical agreement.

Introducing Identify Value

Whether you lot're introducing whole number concepts or decimal place value, it's important to start at the physical level, and base 10 blocks work perfectly because they are sized according to their value.

Even fifth graders aren't as well old for base 10 blocks. Principal teachers often use them to introduce whole numbers, but base of operations 10 blocks are also effective with upper elementary students when exploring decimals. Kids have to understand that each identify to the left is 10 times the size of the place to the right, and base x blocks are the best fashion to explore that concept. Exist sure to download the freebie that goes with this lesson!

How to Introduce Decimals, Step by Step

When introducing decimals, you can use the cubes to represent tens, the flats to represent ones, the rods for tenths, and the units for hundredths. I found that it's really of import to create a place value mat (like the one shown above) for these lessons because it helps students remember what place is represented by each model. To create mats like the ones I used in my lesson, draw the 4-column chart above on a large canvass of heavy paper (18″ ten 24″) and laminate it. Utilize a dry erase marker to depict a decimal indicate between the ones place and the tenths place. Or you can print the patterns in my Build a Number freebie to create the identify value mat on 2 sheets of 8.v″ by 11″ paper.

Seat your students in teams of four and give each team one ready of base 10 manipulatives. It'due south best if each student has a dry erase lath and marker, too. Enquire your students to divide up the materials and then that i person has the cubes, ane has the flats, one has the rods, and ane has the units. Introduce each slice and explicate how it represents a particular decimal place. I explained that even though they had been taught that the "flat" was equal to 100, I wanted them to recall of it as one whole… possibly 1 whole cake for a family unit of mice! If they sliced the cake into 10 parts, each part was one/10 or 0.one. If they cut those 10 slices into x parts, each role was 1/100 or 0.01 of the whole.

Fun decimal practice! Students work together to "build" a decimal with base 10 blocks. Then they write the word name and expanded form of the number.

Team Practice: Build a Decimal

After you introduce the value of each base ten piece, guide your students through an activeness I call "Build a Decimal." Start by writing a decimal in standard form on the lath and asking students work to with their teams to "build" that number on the team mat. Yous tin can brand upwardly your own numbers or use the Build a Decimal Task Cards provided in the freebie. After y'all bank check to be certain they represented the number properly on the mat, inquire students to write the discussion proper noun and expanded form. Build a Decimal freebie from Laura Candler! Includes decimal cards and patterns to create the decimal place value mat needed for the activity.

Expanded form is peculiarly difficult when representing decimals, and using base 10 manipulatives seems to help illustrate the concept. For instance, it'southward easy to see that the number on the mat can be written as 20 + 4 + 0.6 + 0.09 because students tin meet each place represented with physical objects. The expanded class of this number could also be expressed as twenty + 4 + six/10 + nine/100 or completely cleaved down to xx + 4 + half dozen ten (1/10) + 9 x (1/100). All of those ways to limited decimals are much more easily viewed when looking at a mat such every bit the ane below. Students can also see that each identify to the left is 10 times greater than the 1 on its right.

Resources for Teaching Place Value

As with well-nigh math concepts, it'south not enough to introduce them with hands-on materials and so move on to the next lesson. Kids have to practise the terminology and piece of work with the concepts until they are fluent with them. That's where math games come in handy. These iv place value games are included in my Place Value Games Package, which is groovy for 4th and 5th grade. My students enjoyed all of these activities, and they perfect for math centers and pocket-sized group instruction.

Place Value Partners Game
CCSS 2.NBT.A.iii, four.NBT.2, and 5.NBT.A.three
Place Value Partners is my about popular game for reviewing whole number and/or decimal place value. It's like to Battleship, but students use a game board with lines for placing numbers and number cards instead of ships and a coordinate grid. See the prototype below to understand how the game is prepare and played. The Sender calls out each digit, i at a time, and tells the Receiver where to place them. When all the numbers are in place, they compare their game boards, bank check the last number and write its standard form, discussion name, and expanded form in their math journals or on a recording folio. The packet shown here includes four different variations of the game board to include everything from 4-digit whole numbers to decimals.

Place Value Partners game and three more math center games for reviewing place value.

Bingo Showdown Decimal Review
CCSS 5.NBT.three and 5.NBT.4.
Decimal Place Value Bingo Showdown is a variation of the classic Bingo game that can be used for whole group instruction, small guided math groups, cooperative learning teams, or in learning centers. What more tin can I say? It'due south Bingo and kids love information technology!

Place Value Spinner Games
CCSS 4.NBT.2 and four.NBT.3
Some other game my students enjoyed was the Spin 4 Cash Place Value Review Game. In this activity, students exercise word names and expanded forms using chore cards and a spinner. When they go a correct answer, they may spin for a sure amount of "math cash." I also created an international version called Spin two Win that awards tokens instead of greenbacks.

I'thou the Greatest – Comparison Numbers Game
CCSS 2.NBT.4, four.NBT.two, five.NBT.three
The final game I want to share with you is I'm the Greatest, a elementary activity for comparing numbers. The teacher can play confronting the class, or students can play against each other in cooperative learning teams. In this game, players attempt to create the largest number by placing randomly-selected numbers on a game board. There'due south a flake of luck involved, merely in social club to win, students have to exist able to read word names and compare numbers accurately.

All four games are available individually or as a office of the Place Value Game Bundle. Even if yous have already introduced place value concepts, these games make swell review and practice activities throughout the twelvemonth. Y'all've heard that do makes perfect, and that definitely applies to identify value concepts. Enough of place value practice is needed to make perfect!