My Favorite Way to Build Number Sense: Number Sense Routines

Number sense is essential to becoming a well-rounded mathematician, so how might we build number sense with our students?

In my last post, I shared this:

Number sense involves choosing how to break up, combine, or operate on numbers without losing track of the numbers themselves.

Today I want to share my favorite way to build number sense: Number Sense Routines. These are sometimes called “Warm-Ups,” or “Openers,” or “Number Talks,” but I call them Number Sense Routines to focus on the goal (Number Sense) and the method (Routines).

But first: Why does Apple’s Activity Rings let you set your own “Move” goal (number of calories burned per day)? On the left, you see I exceeded my 300 calorie goal, but on the right I burned 187 calories and didn’t “close my ring.”

I could change the goal to 180 calories and “win” (close my ring) – why allow people to do this? Someone who burns 600 calories a day is surely exercising more than someone burning 200 calories a day – shouldn’t they get more credit?

I could change the goal to 180 calories and “win” (close my ring) – why would Apple allow people to do this? Someone who burns 600 calories a day is surely exercising more than someone burning 200 calories a day – shouldn’t they get more credit?

The point: showing up every day is more important than how much you do each day. That is the power of Number Sense Routines – short (10-15 minute) discussions to practice the flexible, creative, and collaborative side of math every day. 

I love the routine “Ways to Make” in which students offer different expressions to make a particular number. Here is a picture from 5th grade of Ways to Make 28 (we asked them to use both addition and multiplication in their answer). This was their first time doing this routine – wow!

Just like exercise, the power of this activity comes from doing it on a regular basis. Can you imagine how much creativity and flexibility students could develop by engaging in this (and other routines) daily? I hope you’ll try Ways to Make:

Ways to Make:

  1. Ask: “What are different ways to make ____?” (Choose any number – including a fraction)  
  2. Give wait time and use a turn and talk
  3. Students share whole group as you list off each idea
  4. Ask students to make connections between their ideas (and/or) give a challenge (like “what if you had to use 3 numbers?”)

Note: This is just one way to facilitate this routine. Let your students and your intuition be your guide as you adapt it.

In the next post: 7 Mistakes I Made with Number Sense Routines. Stay tuned!