Have you ever watched a group of students playing a computer game that featured place value? If you have… did you notice which students easily played through the levels and who had trouble advancing?
Place Value Task Analysis
As a teacher, your mind instantly goes to task analyzing mode! What is needed to build a foundation in order to understand place value.  You start to closely monitor each student’s ability to correctly identify and manipulate digits in various positions (ones, tens, hundreds, etc.). You start to look at their ability to understand of how numbers are built and broken apart. Observing the student’s ability to compare values, add or subtract based on place value, and demonstrate flexibility in moving between different place values give you more information.
With that in mind here is a checklist to determine if students have the necessary skills to understand place value.Â
Teach the Essentials
Read through this chart and If students don’t have these skills, STOP and teach the essential building blocks in order so that students will understand place value. If the student struggles with any of these concepts, pinpoint whether the issue lies with recognizing the value of digits, understanding the relationship between place values, or applying that knowledge to solve problems. This analysis will help in identifying specific gaps in understanding that can guide your future instruction and intervention strategies. If you make sure your students have all the components of place value then you can rest assured your students will not struggle with this cornerstone of mathematics throughout the year.
Young students can develop a strong understanding of place value when teachers assess their knowledge base before diving into place value. Make sure your students have the building blocks they need to create a strong knowledge of place value.
When you are sure your students have mastery of the above elements, move on to place value and watch them zoom!
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