Teach-Primary-Issue-19.1

SARAH FARRELL Day. You may decide to dedicate the entire day to maths-related activities, or you might just add a twist to your existing maths lesson. Whatever you choose to do, here are some ideas to get you started... Number Day activities Number bingo (KS1 and KS2) Resources: Bingo cards with numbers (or mini whiteboards for children to write their own numbers); pens or counters How it works: • Either provide children with bingo cards or ask them draw a 3 x 3 grid and input their own numbers between 1 and 100. • Call out numbers. When they hear a number that they have, children cross out their number or put a counter over it. • The first child to complete a row or column (or the entire grid) shouts “Bingo!” and wins. KS1: Practise number recognition by calling out the number, or challenge children by calling out a calculation, e.g. “4 + 8”. You may also want to limit number choice to within 20 or 50. KS2: Challenge children by displaying the number in Roman numerals or by giving them a harder calculation to find the number, e.g. “3 x 2 x 4”. N umber Day, organised by the NSPCC and celebrated this year on Friday 7 February, encourages schools to engage children in fun, maths-related activities while also raising awareness and support for the NSPCC’s vital work. As a teacher, you can inspire your students to explore numbers through a range of practical, engaging games and activities. Why celebrate? 1) It promotes positive attitudes towards maths. Some children may have the perception that maths is solely about solving calculations. Celebrating Number Day reminds pupils that maths is a fun and enjoyable subject. 2) It develops collaboration and teamwork. Often, maths lessons mainly involve children working independently. Number Day provides the opportunity to engage in group activities with turn-taking games or paired challenges, which promotes social skills and communication. 3) It builds confidence in maths. Allowing children to practise their maths skills through games and challenges gives them an opportunity to be successful and be supported by friends. There are many different ways to celebrate Number Number match-up (KS1 and KS2) Resources: Sets of cards with different representations of number on them; for KS2, the children could create these themselves How it works: • Lay out the cards face down. • Children take it in turns to flip over two cards. • When they find a match (e.g. 4 and four), they keep the pair and take another turn. If they do not turn over a match, they return the cards face down. • Continue until all matches are found. The child with the most pairs wins. Three, two, one... CELEBRATE! Take maths games to a whole new level by tying them in with essential support for the NSPCC this Number Day... KS1: Practise subitising and number recognition by using digits and written words or images representing the numbers. KS2: Include times table multiplication facts, Roman numerals or other representations. Maths scavenger hunt (KS1 and KS2) Resources: A list of challenges or items to find, described in mathematical terms 44 | www.teachwire.net