Do your 4th and 5th graders still get confused with place value concepts? Do they look at you like you have 3 heads if you ask them to write a number in expanded form? You may be tempted to rush through place value with your students because they’re “big kids” and “should know” the basics by now. (Hint: this was me during my first few years of teaching… whoops!) But I urge you to dig deep into it–especially when you are working on place value to the millions!
There is a strong link between number sense and place value that students start building early in elementary school. When students reach upper elementary school, they begin exploring larger numbers and some brand new concepts are introduced, including:
- Finding patterns in the number of zeros in a number when you multiply or divide by powers of 10
- How to write number names when you get past the “ones” period
- Rounding numbers to multiple places
- Writing numbers in scientific and expanded notation
Spending time building a solid foundation with larger numbers in 4th grade and 5th grade will strengthen your students’ number sense. Students will have a better understanding of the numbers they are working with, and you’ll thank yourself later. So, let’s explore some strategies to teach place value to the millions… and beyond!
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Manipulatives
Students need LOTS of opportunities to “see” and “touch” numbers to understand place value. Using manipulatives is one of the best ways to do so! My favorite manipulatives to use when solidifying place value to the millions are base ten blocks and place value disks.
Base ten blocks are a great tool when you are working with 4 digit numbers or numbers with decimals. They are great tools to start with because students are familiar with them. My favorite part about base ten blocks is that they allow students to visibly see how much larger numbers can get. My least favorite part is that it can be a pain to model numbers past the thousands place.
When working with numbers with 5 or more digits, place value disks are a much better tool than base ten blocks! Once students understand that the size of each place gets 10 times bigger than the previous, they are ready to begin using disks. These are a helpful tool because they make modeling larger numbers much easier, because of their small size. To use them, students model a number on a place value chart using the correct number of disks for each digit!
Place Value Cards
Do your students struggle with telling you the value of a digit or writing a number in expanded form? Place value cards are a wonderful tool to strengthen these skills! These cards allow students to see that the “4” in the millions place represents 4,000,000–not just 4.
These cards are a wonderful tool to use when students are learning the expanded forms of numbers! Have students create a number using their cards. Then have them take apart the cards and use them to help them write the expanded form of the number. Or vice versa–have them go from expanded form to standard form!
These cards can also be helpful when students are learning about patterns of zeros when multiplying by powers of 10! Have students lay out the cards when answering 4×10, 4×100, 4×1,000, and so on. When they lay the cards in a triangle shape, they’ll be able to see the pattern of zeros! You can even try the same activity when dividing by powers of 10.
Place Value Charts
Charts are one of the simplest tools to use when teaching place value! But, having one on the wall for students to reference is not enough. The key to using place value charts effectively is to have them accessible for students to write on.
To let students use place value charts as a tool, give them their own! You can laminate them or put them in sheet protectors, and have students use dry erase markers to write on them. I prefer to put them in sheet protectors, so students can keep them in their binders. Students can pull it out during lessons, independent work, or even at home!
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Number Lines
Number lines are one of the best models to use in math! I love using them for addition, subtraction, early multiplication and division, fractions, and even place value. Number lines help students to relate numbers to other numbers, and eventually help students to form mental math strategies!
Two ways to use them in your lessons are with comparing and rounding numbers. For comparing numbers, students can place multiple multi digit numbers in order on a number line to compare their values. To help students with rounding large numbers, have them practice finding the “benchmark” numbers on a number line and which one their number is closest to!
Lots of Practice!
Once students have had many opportunities to work with place value in the concrete ways mentioned above, they need lots of practice. Here are some of my favorite ways to practice:
- Using my free place value mat, you can have students practice with a “number of the day” each day. As a warmup, give them a number to work with and have them practice writing it in multiple forms or rounding it to a certain digit. You can also have students create their own numbers with dice! Keep reading to find out how you can get this resource for FREE!
- Give students a scaffold to use while they’re working, in the form of guided notes. They can even keep this with their place value mat, to help them when they get stuck!
3. If students need even more guidance while they’re working, then interactive worksheets are perfect for them! These worksheets not only give practice and scaffolding, but they also include video links to help them even more!
4. For a fun practice assignment, I love using math riddles! Riddles add a fun layer to practice that students need in order to master place value concepts.
Giving students a deep understanding of place value is important even after they’ve mastered basic numbers. They need concrete practice and visuals even when they are in upper elementary and working with larger, or more complex, numbers. Using the strategies mentioned above will help your students become experts!
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