Mathematics at Mackellar
Grade Prep
This term our Grade Prep’s have been busy learning all about the foundations of addition and subtraction. They have been partitioning and combining collections up to 10 using part-part-whole relationships, identifying pairs of numbers that make a given total and using subitising strategies to recognise and name parts of a collection. See below to find out more about Subitising in the early years.
Grade 1 & 2
Our Grade 1 and 2 students have also been working on their addition and subtraction skills. The Grade 1’s are learning to add and subtract numbers within 20 and build their number fluency for addition and subtraction facts of 10. Our Grade 2’s have been using their knowledge of place value, doubles and counting to help support them add two digit numbers. Students use 120 charts, counting frames, open number lines and Place Value materials to support and show their thinking.
Grade 3 & 4
The students in grade 3 and 4 have been learning all about Multiplication and Division. The Year 3’s have been using arrays to represent multiplication and division facts, as well as beginning to work on their fluency with their 2, 3, 4, 5 and 10’s facts. The Year 4’s have been learning to multiply and divide double and triple digit numbers by single digit numbers using efficient mental calculation strategies.
Grade 5 & 6
Our Grade 5 and 6 students have also been learning about Multiplication and Division this term. The students have been working in targeted teaching groups ensuring the needs of all our students are being met. Using real world contexts, our students are learning to be efficient multiplicative thinkers.
What is Subitising?
Guiding students to have a strong number sense is a crucial element in the early years. The maths concept of subitising, forms an essential part of developing that number sense.
Subitising is the ability to instantly recognise the number of objects in a small group without the need to count them. For example, when a student rolls a dice they can instantly recognise the number of dots on the face of the dice. Subitising in the early years is all about helping students to relate numbers to actual items or groups of items.
The Importance of Subitising
In the beginning stages of number sense, most young children will learn to count by rote, however, it’s the next step in the learning journey that some children struggle with. While these students may sound like they know what they are doing when they are counting out loud, some children don’t always fully understand the meaning behind the numbers they are counting.
Encouraging students to subitise groups of items allows them to develop an understanding of how a number is made up of a collection of items.
The process of subitising can also be used with seeing parts in the whole. For example, in the image above you could encourage a student to group the dots by colours and instantly recognise there are four red dots and two blue dots making a total of six dots altogether.
This understanding of the part-part-whole relationship enables children to separate and combine numbers and is the perfect platform for the understanding of addition and subtraction.
How you can support this idea at home:
An easy way to practice this skill is to create groups of objects from around the house that children need to subitise. Some questions you could ask your child could include:
- Without counting the rocks, how many rocks can you see?
- How did you know there were 6 rocks?
- How many green and black pompoms can you see?
- How many pompoms altogether?
- How many buttons altogether?
- How did you work out how many buttons were there? Did you break the collection into smaller collections?