It’s so important to start the new school year off by reviewing place value with your third graders.
Now, when you think of place value, you probably think of base ten blocks, expanded form, and written form.
Place value skills, like these, are not skills that are taught in third grade (Common Core). However, it can be hard to jump into the school year without having reviewed place value concepts taught in second grade.
But, you don’t want to simply teach these place value concepts again.
It is important to review place value with a PURPOSE.
Teaching Place Value to Third Graders
Standards to review right away:
2.NBT.1 Understand that the three digits of a three-digit number represent the amounts of hundreds, tens, and ones
–prepares students for adding and subtracting, as well as rounding three-digit numbers to the nearest ten and hundred
Students simply understanding what the digits represent is not enough for third grade.
Third graders must understand adding and taking away a ten or hundred from a number.
What order do the tens fall in? For example: If you gave students the number 316, could they tell you what tens the number fell between? Could they tell you what hundreds it fell between?
Understanding this will help third graders have success with rounding.
After all, we don’t want to simply teach students a rhyme for rounding. We want them to have an understanding of why numbers round where they do.
Can students plot a number on a number line if given the first number of the number line? This skill is imperative for rounding.
The skill practice sheet is great for reviewing second grade math skills and getting students ready for rounding. (Grab the free pdf worksheet down below)
2.NBT.2 Count within 1,000; skip count by 5’s, 10’s and 100’s
-sets up a strong foundation for arithmetic patterns (3.OA.9) and multiplication
Skip counting is more than just being able to rattle off 5, 10, 15, 20, etc… It helps students understand arithmetic patterns. It also helps students quickly memorize their multiplication facts.
Review both of these second grade math standards will help prepare your new third graders for the math skills they will be taught this year.
Looking for resources to help you review place value with your third grade students? Check out the resource below!
Free downloads for 3rd Grade Place Value Review:
Other 3rd Grade Math Resources:
Learn more!
