Building Foundations

for Mathematics
Defining Numerical Fluency
Goals & Purposes

What is numerical fluency?

How are students learning math in the

classroom?

What do families need to know to help

their children at home?

Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills

Throughout mathematics in Kindergarten-

Grade 2, students develop numerical
fluency with conceptual understanding
and computational accuracy. Students in
Kindergarten-Grade 2 use basic number
sense to compose and decompose
numbers in order to solve problems
requiring precision, estimation, and
reasonableness. By the end of Grade 2,
students know basic addition and
subtraction facts and are using them to
work flexibly, efficiently, and accurately
with numbers during addition and
subtraction computation.
Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills

Throughout mathematics in Grades 3-5,

students develop numerical fluency with
conceptual understanding and
computational accuracy. Students in
Grades 3-5 use knowledge of the base-
ten place value system to compose and
decompose numbers in order to solve
problems requiring precision, estimation,
and reasonableness. By the end of Grade
5, students know basic addition,
subtraction, multiplication, and division
facts and are using them to work flexibly,
efficiently, and accurately with numbers
during addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division computation.
How Do You Use Numerical Fluency?

Solve the following problem mentally.

Ms. Hill wants to carpet her rectangular

living room, which measures 14 feet by 11
feet. If the carpet she wants to purchase
costs $1.50 per square foot, including tax,
how much will it cost to carpet her living
room?

Write down your thought processes of how

you solved the problem.

Turn to someone next to you and share

your problem solving strategies.
How Do You Use Numerical Fluency?

Resuelve el siguiente problema

mentalmente.

La seora Hill quiere instalar

alfombra, en su sala rectangular
que mide 14 pies por 11 pies. Si la
alfombra que ella quiere comprar
cuesta $1.50 por pie cuadrado,
incluyendo impuestos, cuanto
costara instalar alfombra en la sala
de la Sra. Hill?

Que estrategia usaron para resolver el

problema mentalmente.
Composing and
Decomposing
Building and taking apart numbers
Looking for patterns/relationships
between numbers
Combining numbers
Using numbers as reference points
Definition of Number Sense

Number sense is a good intuition

about numbers and their relationships. It
develops gradually as a result of
exploring numbers, visualizing them in a
variety of contexts and relating them in
ways that are not limited by traditional
algorithms (p. 11).

Howden, H. (1989). Teaching number sense. Arithmetic Teacher, 36(6),

6-11.
 Numerical Fluency
Fluency is important because it provides a bridge
between number recognition and problem
solving comprehension. Because people who are
numerically fluent do not have to concentrate on
operation facts, they can focus their attention on
what the problem means. They can make
connections among the ideas in the problem and
their background knowledge. In other words,
people who are numerically fluent recognize how
to compose and decompose numbers based on
patterns and comprehend how to use those
numerical patterns to solve problems. People who
are less fluent, however, must focus their attention
on the operations, leaving them little attention for
understanding the problem.
Smith, K. H. and Schielack, J. (2006)
 Development of Numerical
Fluency
First the student MUST build an understanding of
composing and decomposing number through
meaningful problems.
Then through much meaningful practice, children
build automaticity, which is the fast, effortless
composing and decomposing of numbers.

Fosnot, C. & M. Dolk. (2001). Young mathematicians at work: Constructing number

sense, addition, and subtraction. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann
 Numerical Fluency

Numerical Fluency is the ability to compose and

decompose numbers flexibly, efficiently, and
accurately within the context of meaningful situations.

Smith, K. H., Lopez, A., Reid, G., & Sullivan, C. (2006)

Example

8+8=

8+9=

How would you describe

the numerical fluency?
Subitizing
"instantly seeing how many."
Foundations of Numerical
Fluency
1 - One-to-one Correspondence
2 - Counting On/Counting Down
3 - More Than/Less Than/Equal To
4 - Part/Part/Whole
5 Unitizing or combining
Strategies for Numerical Fluency
Solve the Following Problem

Solve the following problem mentally.

A group of teachers at a local school

are involved in a walking contest. They
are asked to wear a pedometer for
eight weeks. The first week Janice
walked 65,787 steps. The next three
weeks she walked a total of 214,241
steps. On average how many steps did
Janice walk per day during the four
week period?

Write down the thought processes you

used to solve the problem.
Solve the Following Problem

Resuelve el siguiente problema

mentalmente.

Un grupo de padres en la escuela local

estn participando el una competencia
de caminata. Ellos contaran el numero
de pasos por ocho semanas. La primera
semana Ms. Leda camino un total de
65,787 pasos. Las siguientes tres
semanas ella camino un total de
214,241 pasos. En promedio cuantos
pasos camino Ms. Leda al da durante
el periodo de cuatro semanas?

Escribe el proceso mental que usaste para

resolver el problema.
 Models
Concrete (such as)
Counters
Double-sided counters
Thematic counters
Rods
Base Ten Blocks
Semi-Concrete/Pictorial (such as)
Ten-Frame Templates
Drawing Pictures
Number Lines
 Bridging
Begin with stated problems that require children
to think.
Have children use manipulatives to develop a
visualization of the problem.
Have students record about their work.
Lead the students to abstraction.
Building on Unitizing

Spotting Numbers
Lets Frame It
 Strategies for Addition and
Subtraction of Whole
Numbers
A. Give Me Ten!
B. Think Addition
C. Seeing Doubles
D. Half of Doubles
E. Doubles Plus One
F. Speedy Tens
Strategies of Compensation

17 +12 = 29

29 12 = 17
Fact Families

Using subitizing to teach fact families.

Operations and Numerical
Fluency
25 + 25 =
10 + 10 + 5 + 10 + 10 + 5 =
10, 20, 25, 35, 45, 50
20 + 20 + 5 + 5 = 40 + 10 =
50
I just thought of it as 2
quarters and 2 quarters is 50
cents. So, 25 + 25 = 50
 Defining Addition, Subtraction,
Multiplication, and Division of
Whole Numbers
At your table, develop a definition of addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division based on the TEKS for your particular
grade level.

Small groups share their answer with the large group.

Solve the Following Problem

Mrs. Parks is buying ice-cream

bars for the 17 dozen students
at her school. The ice cream
bars are packaged 10 to a
box. What is an estimate of
the number of boxes she has
to buy so that each student
gets at least 1 ice cream bar?
Computational Estimation

Computational estimation is the ability to quickly

produce an approximate result for a computation that
will be adequate for the situation.
Computational Estimation

Front-end Approach
Rounding Methods
Compatible Numbers
Addition and Subtraction of Whole Numbers

Amy is 8 years old. She was

assigned a school project
regarding her family. She did
not know the year that her
grandmother was born, but did
know that she just celebrated
her 86th birthday. How could
Amy determine the year her
grandmother was born?
Double Digit Addition and
Subtraction Through the Use of
Strategies
Reflect on how you have solved previous problems. Have you
always used a traditional algorithm to solve the problem?
Think about how children use inventive strategies to solve
problems.
How important is students metacognition of solving
mathematical problems?
 Relationships in Multiplication and
Division
12
1x12

2x6 4x3
6x2

3x4
12x1
When to Develop
Automaticity
Once you have taught two strategies, drill based on
those strategies.
Teach more strategies.
Automaticity is needed ONLY after students have
developed a meaningful concept of addition,
subtraction, multiplication, or division and they have
also developed flexible and useful strategies for those
operations.
Math Workstation #1

Compose and Decompose Numbers

Math Workstation #2

Addition and Subtraction

Math Workstation #3

Multiplication and Division

http://www.abcya.com/interactive_100_number_chart.htm
Math Workstation #4

Teacher
Thank you!

Questions?