Building Number Awareness

Just like phonemic awareness helps students build their sense of our language, number awareness builds on students’ understanding of numeracy.

The main difference in this comparison, though, is that the ability to understand quantity is actually much more natural than understanding our language. Studies show that humans are born with an approximate number system, that is, an ability to understand quantities and do comparisons without a number system. Once we tie this ability to our created number system, students have a deeper sense of number that will help them understand mathematical concepts. Algebraic concepts are also quite natural. The human brain is a great connection and pattern-maker and algebraic thinking is the ability to reason, make out patterns, and explain connections.

So, what if we helped students use their natural-born skills to simultaneously build their deep sense of our number system AND their cognitive skills of algebraic thinking? Algebra skills like representing, substituting, simplifying, patterning, etc. can all be practiced before students deal with '“big numbers” in a middle school algebra class. Students can practice mathematical skills and in turn use those skills to learn mathematical content.

Here are some components of natural number awareness - or mental math. These skills can be practiced through easy every day activities, much like phonemic awareness! Plus, the activities are fun and challenge students in a way they crave - to make connections and patterns instead of trying to recall information.

So, here are some skills & activities to help your students build their number awareness!

Hopefully you can see how these skills can be practiced daily with ease and very little prep! Students need experiences in their day to stop and make sense of number to build their number sense and thinking abilities.

I encourage you to take some time in your day this school year to DO number math!

CLICK HERE FOR A HANDY PDF OF ALL THE NUMBER AWARENESS SKILLS.