Number Sense Teaching Resources
Browse printable worksheets, hands-on math center activities and more teaching resources designed to teach number sense in the elementary classroom.
Developing number sense is an important building block for elementary math students and unlocks a deeper understanding of numbers and their relationships. Aligned with Common Core, each worksheet, game and century activity was created by teachers with teachers — and students — in mind to help build those skills in ways that engage and excite students about numbers!
Want to learn more about number sense? Read on for a primer from our teacher team, including a definition of number sense, how to assess this important math skill and more!
What Is Number Sense?
In the most basic sense (no pun intended), number sense refers to a student's intuitive understanding of numbers and their relationships. It includes the ability to estimate and compare quantities, understand numerical patterns and relationships and make reasonable judgments about the accuracy of calculations.
When students show an understanding of numbers, their size, relationships, and how they are affected by the four mathematical operations, what they're really showing is their number sense.
In an educational setting, building number sense is closely related to other foundational skills such as problem-solving, critical thinking and logical reasoning. As our students get older, it will become a crucial skill for daily life they will use to manage finances, calculate time and make decisions based on numerical information.
Teach Starter Teacher Tip: Although the names may seem interchangeable, it's worth noting that number sense is not the same as mathematical fluency or memorization of algorithms, but rather a deep understanding of the underlying concepts and relationships between numbers.
When Does Number Sense Develop?
There is no one grade level when we're teaching students number sense — instead, it continues to develop and become more sophisticated as students progress through elementary school.
Research suggests that babies as young as 6 months old can distinguish between small and large numbers of objects, and by preschool, students are already working on number sense as they begin to learn counting and one-to-one correspondence. At this level, they're also beginning to develop an understanding of quantity and relative size — both key to overall number sense.
Number sense will continue to grow in elementary school as students become more adept at recognizing and using numbers to solve problems, and it continues into high school and — for many students — into college.
Assessing Number Sense
When we assess students for their number sense skills, there are certain mathematical concepts that they should have under their belts. These include:
- Ability to Recognize Missing Numbers in a Pattern —When kids can fill in missing numbers in a sequence, they're showing that they can make connections between numbers and develop an understanding of the relationships between them.
- Ability to Use Mental Math — Students with number sense can use mental math to solve problems involving the four basic operations.
- Ability to Engage in Systematic Counting — Children who can count systematically can more easily understand the relationships between numbers, including number magnitude, patterns, and sequences.
- Ability to Subitize Numbers — Students can use visual clustering skills to instantly recognize how many objects are in a group without physically counting them.
- Ability to Relate Numbers to Real-World Problems —For example, a student may understand that "3" means "three objects" or "three days" or "three dollars."
- Ability to Compose and Decompose Numbers — Students use number sense when they break down numbers and put them back together. For example, a student who can break down the number 10 into 8 and 2, then add the two back together to again make 10, is using number sense.
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Christmas Math Puzzle - Counting to 10
Count groups up to 10 with a printable Christmas math puzzle.
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Christmas Color By Number - Hundreds Chart Mystery Pictures
Print the perfect color-by-number math activity for Christmas: a set of 12 Christmas-inspired mystery hundreds charts.
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Tracing Numbers 0-20
Practice writing numbers 0–20 with this tracing activity.
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6-Digit Number of the Day Worksheet
A 6-digit place value worksheet to represent the number of the day in different ways.
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Christmas Color by Number Pack
Use knowledge of numbers to 10 to color in these Christmas color by number worksheets.
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Roll, Count, and Cover - Dot Day Activities
Build fine motor skills and counting skills with a set of printable Roll, Count, and Color Dot Day Activities.
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Kindergarten Counting 1-20 Matching Game
Use this matching game in your primary classroom to teach students to count quantities and match them to numbers (1-20).
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Christmas Counting Worksheet - Search and Find
Practice counting with your students to get them in the mood for the holidays with this fun Christmas search, count, and find activity.
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Spring "Numberpillars" — Kindergarten Math Center Activity
Match numbers 1-10 with their various visual representations to build a fun mathematical caterpillar!
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Subitize and Color – Worksheet
Practice subitizing to five with this color-by-number worksheet.
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Subitizing Sorting Activity
Practice recognizing the quantity of a small group of objects with this subitizing sorting activity.
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Frog and Flies Match-Up Activity (Counting to 12)
Practice counting numbers 1 to 12 with this fun frog and fly match-up activity.
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Numbers 1-30 Fishy Find Game
A fishing game to practice counting and recognizing numbers 1-30 in number and word form.
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Numbers 0 to 20 Handwriting - Worksheet
Activity worksheets to use in the classroom when learning about the numbers 0 to 20.
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0-20 Number and Word Flashcards - Birds
Use these flashcards when learning about the numbers 0–20.
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Numbers to 100 - Printable Tens Frames
Print a colorful set of tens frames to enhance your small group math lessons.
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Ten Frame - Printable Templates
Print a set of 10 blank ten frames to use in various math lessons.
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Kindergarten Morning Work (August)
Practice foundational math and language arts skills during the month of August with this collection of 23 kindergarten morning work worksheets.
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Valentine's Day Hundreds Chart Mystery Pictures
Follow the color-coded number guides to fill in the hundreds chart square and reveal 9 special Valentine’s Day images.
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Hundreds Number, Word, and Base-10 Block Posters
Posters showing numbers going up in hundreds.
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0-9 Digit Cards
A set of 0-9 digit cards to be used for numeracy games in the classroom.
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Tracing Numbers 0-10
A worksheet to assist students when learning how to write the numbers 0–10.
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Base-10 Flashcards - Random Numbers (100–10,000)
A set of 40 Base-10 flashcards of random numbers between 100 and 10,000.
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Aliens in a Spaceship Counting & Subitizing Game
Download a fun, hands-on game for teaching kids to count and use one-to-one correspondence or to subitize.
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Thanksgiving Dot to Dot Worksheets
Practice counting up to 40 and create beautiful Thanksgiving art using a set of printable Thanksgiving Connect the Dots Printables.
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Search and Find – Back to School
Start the school year with a fun Back to School math activity for first graders.
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Number Anchor Charts - Math
Display this set of 1-20 math anchor charts in the classroom to encourage knowledge and understanding of each number.
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I Have Who Has - Numbers 1-20
Practice identifying numbers 1–20 with this set of “I Have, Who Has” game cards.
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Number and Math Symbol Mini Flashcards
Print a set of colorful number and symbol cards for various math activities.
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Counting to 20 - Worksheet
A worksheet to practice one-to-one correspondence.
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Numbers 0-20 Bingo
A set of 32 bingo cards to practice different representations of the numbers 0-20.
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Counting 1–20 Matchup Cards
A set of matchup cards to practice one-to-one correspondence.