1…2…3…4…5…6…7….7…7…7…7… cabbage?
Sequencing is far more than saying the names of numbers in order. Many young learners have difficulty navigating a sequence with confidence, so I made a number line on a string to help them.
Colour and pattern
Using origami paper, I decorated the tabs for each section, repeating the designs when I reached the corresponding section. For example, the units have a grey, blue, and orange design depicting fish in water. That design is later repeated for numbers 100-109 and, had I made more tabs, would also be found again on 200-209, 300-309, and so on. The same goes for 10-19 and 110-119, which have a blue and white design depicting waves, 20-29 and 120-129 with their rose buds, and so on.
Later on, for 50-59 and 150 (the last number on the number line) there are more fish, but with a different style and colour scheme. There are also many other blue and white designs and designs depicting waves. When I introduce learners to this resource, I encourage them to describe each design in detail, as this helps them identify it later and prompts them to spend more examining the tabs than they would if they were in easily distinguishable block colours.
Tab sizes
As place value increases, so does the size of the tabs, with the units being the shortest, the tens longer, and the hundreds even longer. In our imaginations, we can see the even longer 1,000s tabs and yet longer 10,000s tabs.
A note about zero
I haven’t yet decided how to construct the tab for zero. In previous, simpler versions, I have used a different shape from that of the other tabs, as well as a colour, texture, or design distinct from all the other tabs.
In the number line, there are only nine unit tabs, as I do not treat zero as part of the units category. This is mostly because the number line is useful when teaching grouping and multiplication tables. Zero behaves in a unique way and setting it apart aesthetically is a helpful reminder.
Construction
In the past, I have made versions of this number line with students during our lessons and we have used whatever materials we have had on hand. We folded strips of construction paper to form structurally sound tabs and strung them onto yarn. For this project, I used acetate to give the tabs structure and a resourceful student gave me a length of shoelace string. The origami paper came from a starter kit in the activities section of our local Indigo bookstore.
Some extra details
In a future post, I’ll suggest specific activities for this sort of number line. In my teaching, I often use this number line together with two or three other resources to help students build abstract mathematical concepts. I’ll post about each resource individually and then later also post about how to use them together. Lastly, I use this number line – together with other resources – to teach grouping and introduce students to prime numbers. In a future post, I’ll provide images and explanations about how I’ve done it on this number line and other resources, but if you look closely at the images in the slide show, you might notice that some tabs (the prime numbers) have tiny strips of patterned paper stuck near the top. I like to add detail and opportunities for exploration in resources to help students experience this sort of learning as a process of discovery.
Collaborate and Enjoy
Although this version of the number line on a string was created at home using materials I purchased specially, planning and building one with your students is the best way to imbue it with meaning. The design of the number line is not a secret or a trick and students benefit even more when they help design and create the resources that help them learn.
Post Script
This post is rather light on humorous artistic interludes, because it seemed best to create a single slide show to display the number line. Creating that slide show also took me a very long time and well past a sensible bedtime, so I am feeling sleepy rather than silly this morning. Hopefully the dry, mumbling prose hasn’t been too off-putting and you’re looking forward to making versions of this number line too. If you do, post pictures on Instagram (@blueberry_fig) and I’ll repost them!