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Multiple Representations: Number Line

Overview

Easy access to seeing the relationships between numbers promotes number sense as students see these connections repeatedly. Students can also use number lines to practice and demonstrate their approaches for solving problems involving Counting, Estimation, and Operations.

Use It in the Classroom

Watch how this elementary teacher explores a number line with her class by integrating it into her game board. Through probing questions, this teacher promotes the development of student number sense and Linearity.

As a visual tool, number lines reinforce Counting sequences and Linearity, which are critical for addition and subtraction problems. Teachers can also display a large number line in the classroom to serve as a reference for students, alleviating some of the cognitive load on Working Memory.

Design It into Your Product

Videos are chosen as examples of strategies in action. These choices are not endorsements of the products or evidence of use of research to develop the feature.

Learn how Motion Math Zoom uses an interactive number line to teach Place Value. Through this fun game, learners are able to play freely with space and quantity of concrete objects to develop their Place Value and magnitude understanding.

Products can design number lines that display abstract concepts, like Counting and Place Value, in a visual, interactive manner to support student understanding. They can also provide the option for learners to show their work and thinking on a number line when solving problems.

View References

Resources

Below are additional examples, research, and professional development. These resources are possible representations of this strategy, not endorsements.

Examples

Number Line for Operations & Measurement

Think Math! examples to teach with number lines

Examples

Number Line Strategy

Goalbook description with downloadable resources

Research

Learning Counting

Subtopic that explores how children develop counting skills on Digital Promise's Research Map

Research

Number Sense

Topic that explores how the brain works to understand numbers and numerical magnitudes on Digital Promise's Research Map