Counting Bigger Groups

As the groups we count get bigger, the risk of counting the same object twice — or skipping one — grows too. The fix is simple but important: move each object aside (or touch it firmly) as it’s counted, so nothing gets counted twice.

Good practice objects: 6 bottle caps, a line of 7 pencils, a small pile of 8 leaves, 9 pebbles gathered from outside. Physical, everyday objects make the numbers feel real rather than abstract.

Learning the Shapes of 6, 7, 8 and 9

• 6 — curls down and in at the bottom, like a snake curling up to sleep
• 7 — a straight dash to the right, then a slanted stroke down, like a walking stick
• 8 — an “S” shape closed at the top, like a pair of glasses
• 9 — a small circle on top with a straight line down, like a balloon on a string

Have pupils “write” each number in the air with big arm movements before putting pencil to paper.

Numbers We Already Know From Daily Life

• 6 — the number of sides on a die (cube)
• 7 — the number of days in a week
• 8 — the number of legs on a spider
• 9 — a familiar football shirt number

Putting It All in Order

We now have a longer number ladder to climb. The correct order from smallest to largest is: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.

A fun way to practice: give pupils cards with numbers 1–9 and have them physically arrange themselves in a line in the correct order.

Evaluation

1. Count out 7 of your crayons and show your teacher.
2. Write the number 8.
3. Which number represents a bigger amount: 6 or 9?
4. Draw 6 circles in your book.
5. What number comes immediately after 7?

Assignment

1. Write the numbers 6, 7, 8, 9 two times each.
2. Draw 8 stars and write the number 8 next to them.
3. Fill in the missing numbers: 1, 2, ___, 4, ___, 6, ___, 8, 9.