What is place value in Year 1?

Place value tells us what each digit is worth. In 35, the 3 is worth 3 tens (30) and the 5 is worth 5 ones.

How do I explain tens and ones to a 5 year old?

Use bundles of 10 sticks and single sticks. Make numbers with them and say the tens first.

Which sign means less than?

The sign < means less than. The small point is on the side of the smaller number.

Do Year 1 children count in 2s, 5s and 10s?

Yes. The National Curriculum asks them to count in multiples of 2, 5 and 10.

Year 1 numbers to 100 and place value lesson to download as PDF

Q: Which sign means less than?

The sign < means less than. The small point is on the side of the smaller number.

Q: Do Year 1 children count in 2s, 5s and 10s?

Yes. The National Curriculum asks them to count in multiples of 2, 5 and 10.

This Year 1 numbers to 100 and place value lesson is written for pupils aged 5-6 and follows the National Curriculum. In short, it shows you how to count to 100, recognise tens and ones, and compare numbers using more than, less than and equal to. Before you start, it helps to revise numbers to 20 and counting, because this lesson builds on it.

Table of Contents

Year 1 numbers to 100 and place value lesson: what you will learn

Hello, I am Otto! Today we climb up to 100. That is a big number, but we can break it into small, easy steps. We use tens and ones to understand every number. Are you ready to count high?

Starter activity

Put 30 pencils or toy bricks on a table. Make groups of 10 by counting out ten and putting them together. How many groups of 10 do you make? Count the groups in tens: 10, 20, 30. Then add 4 more bricks. How many are there altogether? Say it out loud.

Tens and ones

Definition: tens and ones

Every two-digit number has tens and ones. The left digit tells how many tens. The right digit tells how many ones.

This picture shows 3 tens and 4 ones. That is 34.

Key fact

10 ones make 1 ten.
In 47 there are 4 tens and 7 ones.
The digit 4 in 47 stands for 40. The digit 7 stands for 7.
47 = 40 + 7

Example 1

How many tens and ones are in 62?

The left digit is 6, so there are 6 tens. The right digit is 2, so there are 2 ones. 62 = 60 + 2.

Example 2

Write the number: 5 tens and 8 ones.

5 tens is 50. Add 8 ones. 50 + 8 = 58.

Reading and writing numbers to 100

The tens have special names: ten, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty, sixty, seventy, eighty, ninety, one hundred. For numbers in between, say the tens and then the ones. We write a small line (hyphen) between them.

Number	Word
21	twenty-one
34	thirty-four
56	fifty-six
67	sixty-seven
89	eighty-nine
100	one hundred

Watch out

Be careful with 14 and 40. They sound nearly the same, but 14 has one ten and four ones, and 40 has four tens. The same goes for 15 and 50, and for 16 and 60.

The hundred square

Definition: hundred square

A hundred square is a grid with the numbers 1 to 100 in rows of ten. When you move down one row, the number goes up by 10.

Method: using the hundred square

Find your number on the grid.
Move one square right for 1 more, or one square left for 1 less.
Move one square down for 10 more, or one square up for 10 less.

Example 3

What is 10 more than 35? What is 10 less than 35?

10 more: go down one row from 35 to 45. 10 less: go up one row to 25. Notice that only the tens digit changed.

Counting in twos, fives and tens

You can count in steps. Counting in 2s: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 ... Counting in 5s: 5, 10, 15, 20 ... Counting in 10s: 10, 20, 30, 40 ... Counting in steps is quicker than counting in ones. It also helps when you learn the times tables later on.

Example 4

Count in 5s from 0 to 30. Write the numbers.

0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30. The ones digit is always 0 or 5.

Example 5

A box holds 10 eggs. How many eggs are in 4 boxes?

Count in tens: 10, 20, 30, 40. There are 40 eggs.

Comparing numbers

Definition: more than, less than, equal to

We use signs to compare numbers. The sign > means is more than. The sign < means is less than. The sign = means is equal to. The open mouth of the sign always faces the bigger number.

Method: comparing two numbers

Look at the tens digits first. The number with more tens is bigger.
If the tens are the same, look at the ones.
Choose the sign >, < or =.

Example 6

Compare 47 and 52.

47 has 4 tens. 52 has 5 tens. 5 tens is more than 4 tens, so 52 is bigger. We write 47 < 52.

Example 7

Put in order, smallest first: 73, 37, 70, 7.

7 has no tens, so it is the smallest. Then 37 (3 tens). Then 70 and 73 (7 tens). 70 has 0 ones and 73 has 3 ones. The order is 7, 37, 70, 73.

Did you know?

The number 100 is special. A baby who is 100 days old has a party in some countries. Pupils in many schools celebrate "100 days of school" and make collections of exactly 100 things!

Otto's tip

Always look at the tens first. The digit on the left is the boss of the number, because it is worth more!

How to use this Year 1 numbers to 100 and place value lesson

First, read the key points so that you know where the Year 1 numbers to 100 and place value lesson is going. Then work through each definition and worked example, and cover the solution before you read it. After that, practise with the numbers to 100 and place value worksheet and check every question with the worksheet answers. When you feel ready, test yourself with the multiple choice questions or the quick quiz. Finally, sit the numbers to 100 and place value test and mark it with the test answers.

Also, the starters are a good warm-up, so you can keep the key facts fresh. Moreover, all the pages of this chapter work together, so you can move between them at any time. For example, many pupils read the lesson on Monday, practise on Wednesday and test themselves on Friday. In short, this Year 1 numbers to 100 and place value lesson gives you everything you need for the chapter.

To sum up, regular practice works better than one long session. For instance, ten minutes a day is often enough. Besides, mistakes are useful, because they show what to revise next. Then, once a method feels easy, try a harder question. As a result, you build confidence step by step.

Numbers to 100 and place value – Year 1 maths lesson to download as PDF