Examining dots and coming up with addition problems as to how many their is ; is great practice!! It looked like a ten frame but it was similar and they really needed to examine and count to confirm their reasoning.

Great practice and it gets them thinking and problem solving!

Hi Connie, I agree, class size and distractions make such a difference in a classroom. The size of this class is actually 23 students, however students whose parents did not give permission to be filmed could not be in the video. We are fortunate to be attached to a special needs consortium school who have funding for 1 to 1 paras in certain cases. Please note that our classes also start the year with these routines from the very first day of the school year, so the students are used to the structure of the activity and sharing their ideas. As to the English learners, we have found these routines and sharing of ideas an extremely powerful way to encourage their communication of mathematical ideas with their peers. I would love to hear more about your experience with number routines and the successes and struggles you have faced. Maybe together we can brainstorm some ideas for managing them effectively in your classrooms, regardless of class size or distracting behaviors.

Where in the world are these classrooms where there are 16 kids in the class and an aid for special needs kids. I work in Upland and last year had 27 and no aid and special needs kids. Sure would be nice to have these discussions with such a small group and no distractions. Nobody is making noises to soothe themselves and nobody is rocking back and forth making noise with no ability to control themselves and it sure is amazing to hear kids who are proficient in English express their thoughts.

I think the little girl did 4 from the top and 1 from the bottom to make 5. So she did see 5 and 5. But she probably counted the two at the bottom again after making a ten.