The beginning of the year is a great time to have children practice writing numbers. Giving students the opportunity to interact with numbers and learn about how they are formed will help them in the future as they learn more about numbers. Each of the ways to learn numbers below you allows students to trace, build, and feel how the numbers are formed. Students will build an understanding of how numbers are formed and will practice writing and tracing them.
I always tell parents that they can help their children learn to write numbers by tracing the shapes with their finger. Tracing numbers and feeling the paper under your finger helps your brain remember how to make that number in the future. The Sensory Number cards are great for this! I've noticed an increase in how my students are able to write their numbers after tracing them. I put the 0-10 sensory cards in a tub as a math center to begin the year. Students put the cards in order from 0-10 and then trace them one at a time. As they trace, they pay attention to the arrows on the card that show them how to correctly form the number. Over time, after students trace a number, I have them write the number on paper to transfer that learning over from finger to pencil. Once a student has mastered the 0-10 numbers, I take those out and put the 11-20 cards in the math center.
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When students are learning to write and form numbers, having something tactile that is interacting with their finger that helps them remember how to write the numbers. The Word Formation Sand Tray isn't just for writing letters and words, but for writing numbers! Using a model (written on an index card) students can practice forming the letters in the super soft sand and get some sensory feedback as they create the number. My students enjoy writing numbers in the sand and after a few tries of writing the number in the sand tray, I have them write it on paper.
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Another way students can become familiar with numbers is to build them! The Learning Resources Number Construction set helps students looks at the shapes and line parts that are used to make numbers. Students use the pieces to build numbers and then use the included counters to show how many that number is equal to. My students like to try and build the numbers in order and lay them all out in a line. I often will have my students trace the numbers with their finger to help them remember how to write the number. When I put this set in a math center, I include the cards that come with the set so my students can focus on creating the numbers 0-10. When we learn about the teen numbers, students create those numbers on their own.
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