Making Tens with Counters

In math we've been learning about the numbers zero through ten. Simple, you say - but it's so much more. Those early numbers are part of the foundation for all number skills and concepts. Last week, we used double-sided counters (red/yellow) to help us learn about different ways to make ten. Actually, we've been working on different ways to make seven, eight, nine, and ten. As you can see, we talk about the "whole", or the total number of counters (which is ten).  After we find out the total, we look to see what the "parts" are.  We know that 5 red and 5 yellow make 10, or 6 red and 4 yellow make 10, etc. We can use objects, fingers, and counters to show the parts that make the whole. This concept of parts and the whole is addition in it's simplest form - and it's so great to see them "thinking" out loud as they are learning.