Place Value Teaching Resources
Browse place value charts, printable worksheets, games and more teaching resources created by teachers, for teachers like you.
This collection of curriculum-aligned and editable teacher-created resources has been carefully reviewed by the expert teachers on the Teach Starter team to ensure every single one is ready to use in the classroom. That means you can save hours on lesson planning with activities ready to print or use digitally!
Want to learn more about this section of the math curriculum, or just looking for fresh ideas to engage your students? Read on for a primer from our teacher team, including a look at the meaning of place value and tips on teaching place value in the classroom!
What Is Place Value?
In math, the term place value refers to the value of a digit in relation to its position in a number. For example, in the decimal system, which is based on powers of 10, the value of a digit in a number depends on its position relative to the decimal point, as follows:
- The digit in the ones place has a value of 1 times the digit.
- The digit in the tens place has a value of 10 times the digit.
- The digit in the hundreds place has a value of 100 times the digit.
- The digit in the thousands place has a value of 1000 times the digit.
- And so on.
Place Value Example
Like most math concepts, looking at place value examples with your students is key to helping them understand the concept. So let's look at an example of place value using the number 3,245:
- 3 is in the thousands place
- 2 is in the hundreds place
- 4 is in the tens place
- 5 is in the ones place
Therefore, its value can be calculated as:
(3 x 1000) + (2 x 100) + (4 x 10) + (5 x 1) = 3000 +200 +40 + 5 = 3,245.
Why Is Place Value Important?
Place value is an important concept for elementary students to understand as it is a major factor in understanding numbers and their overall value.
Understanding place value is also essential for performing the four math operations, and it will help students as they move on toward working with decimal fractions, scientific notation and other mathematical concepts.
What Is a Place Value Chart?
A handy tool for teaching this math concept is the place value chart! This visual teaching tool can be used to represent and organize numbers based on their value and position in a given number.
How to Use a Place Value Chart
A place value chart is typically divided into columns representing the different powers of 10 in our number system. Each column is labeled with the name of the place value it represents (e.g. ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, etc.) and contains a series of boxes or cells — each corresponding to a single digit.
The rightmost column will represent the ones place, the next column to the left will represent the tens place, the next represents the hundreds place and so on.
Students can place a particular number in their place value chart, determine its value, and then figure out two-digit, three-digit, four-digit, and larger numbers.
To read a place value chart, students work their way left or right. For example, if you start from the "ones" place, you can go left one space to the "tens" place, then on to the "hundreds" place and so on. As students enter the intermediate grades, they begin to learn about numbers to the right of the decimal point (tenths, hundredths, thousandths, etc.).
Place Value vs. Face Value
At some point, your students may ask about face value — after all, the terms sound similar! So are they interchangeable? The answer is no.
Face value and place value — despite their similar names — are not the same, but they are related.
As we've already noted, the place value of a digit tells us the value of that digit based on its position in a number. The place value of a digit changes depending on where it is in the number.
On the other hand, the face value of a digit tells us the actual value of the digit itself, regardless of its position in the number. So, for example, in the number 357, the face value of the digit 5 is simply 5.
In essence, place value is what helps us understand the value of a number based on the position of its digits, but face value is what helps us understand the value of individual digits in a number.
- Plus Plan
Thanksgiving Place Value for 2nd Grade - Interactive
Review 2 and 3-digit place value concepts with an interactive Thanksgiving Math Activity.
- Plus Plan
Thanksgiving Turkey Hide! - Place Value Worksheet
Save the Thanksgiving Turkeys and practice modeling numbers in base ten with a printable Thanksgiving Math Worksheet
- Plus Plan
Place Value Paper Turkey Craft
Make a flock of silly turkey crafts and review place value concepts with a printable Place Value Turkey Template!
- Plus Plan
Expanded Form Worksheet Pack
Practice expanding 2-digit to 6-digit numbers with this set of 5 worksheets.
- Plus Plan
I Have Who Has Expanded Form Game
Explore numbers up to 6-digits with this fun whole class place value game of 'I have, Who Has?'
- Plus Plan
Decomposing 3-Digit Numbers Matching Activity
Help children decompose 3-digit numbers by identifying the place value of hundreds, tens, and ones with this matching activity.
- Plus Plan
Number of the Day Worksheet
Explore 4, 5, and 6-digit numbers using this number of the day worksheet with your students.
- Plus Plan
3-Digit Place Value Mini-Book
Explore place value in 3-digit numbers with this place value mini-book.
- Plus Plan
3-Digit Place Value Cover Up Game
Engage students in understanding place value to the hundreds with this place value card game.
- Plus Plan
Expanded Form Poster Set
Teach students what it looks like to expand 2-digit, 3-digit, 4-digit, 5-digit and 6-digit numbers with this set of classroom posters.
- Plus Plan
Thousands Place Value Number Expander Template
Explore expanding 4 digit numbers with your students using this number expander template.
- Plus Plan
2-Digit and 3-Digit Expanded Form Interactive Activity
Use this interactive activity with your students to practice expanded form through to the hundreds place.
- Plus Plan
Rounding to 10, 100, and 1,000 Worksheet - Halloween Color-By-Number
Round each number to the place of the underlined digit with a fun Halloween color-by-number worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Comparing Numbers Worksheets - Halloween Math
Count and compare numbers to ten with engaging Halloween-themed comparing numbers worksheets.
- Plus Plan
Rounding to the Nearest 100 Worksheet
Help your students find the correct bone for each dog by rounding to the nearest hundreds place with this math worksheet designed for 3rd and 4th-grade students.
- Free Plan
Rounding to the Nearest 10 Worksheet
Teach your students to round to the nearest 10 with this printable math worksheet designed for 3rd and 4th grade students.
- Plus Plan
I Have, Who Has – Rounding to 500,000
Use this engaging math game to practice rounding numbers through 500,000 with your students.
- Plus Plan
Rounding Rainbow – Classroom Poster and Differentiated Worksheet Pack
Download this set of differentiated rounding worksheets and accompanying poster for your math classroom.
- Plus Plan
Base-10 Blocks - Pictorial Model Cards
A set of base-10 block cards to compose and decompose numbers, including decimals.
- Plus Plan
Owls Round, TOO Matching Game
Practice rounding through to the nearest hundred thousands place with our set of 36 whole number rounding match-up cards.
- Plus Plan
2-Digit Number of the Day - Spiral Review
Review a variety of second-grade math concepts with a Number of the Day slide deck and recording sheet.
- Plus Plan
100 More and Less Worksheets - Cut and Paste
Use an understanding of place value to determine a number 100 more or less than a number with a pair of cut-and-paste math worksheets.
- Plus Plan
Ten More, Ten Less Within 100 - Cut and Paste Worksheet
Practice adding and subtracting 10 from given numbers within 100 in this cut-and-paste worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Tens and Ones 2-Digit Place Value Mat
Build two-digit numbers and improve place value skills with a printable tens and ones math mat.
- Plus Plan
Rounding Task Cards - Numbers to 100,000
Use place value knowledge and reasoning skills to round numbers up through the hundred thousands place with a set of 24 task cards.
- Plus Plan
Rounding Numbers on Vertical Number Lines - Matching Activity
Practice rounding to the nearest ten and hundred on a vertical number line with this set of 36 match-up cards.
- Plus Plan
Rounding on Number Lines - Interactive Mystery Picture
Karate chop those rounding standards with a fun Rounding on a Number Line Mystery Reveal activity.
- Plus Plan
Worksheets - Rounding Using a Vertical Number Line
Use a vertical number line to round whole numbers to the tens, hundreds, and thousands place with a pack of differentiated rounding worksheets.
- Plus Plan
Rounding to the Nearest Ten, Hundred, and Thousand - Worksheet
Review rounding concepts with a worksheet covering rounding to the nearest ten, hundred, and thousand.
- Plus Plan
Rounding Worksheets - Cut and Paste
Provide your students with engaging practice to help them understand rounding with a set of differentiated worksheets.
- Plus Plan
Vertical Number Line - Rounding Worksheets
Use a vertical number line to round whole numbers to the nearest ten, hundred, thousand, and ten thousand with a set of rounding worksheets.
- Plus Plan
2-Digit Place Value Game - Interactive Slide Deck
Review various first- and second-grade place value concepts with an interactive daily place value warmup.