Paper Pumpkin Numbers

What You Need:

• Orange paper
• Scissors
• Black marker
• Pencil

What You Do:

1. Before you get your child involved, cut out 30 paper pumpkins. Make sure that they are large enough that numbers could be easily written on them.
2. On three pumpkins, write three numbers larger than 10. For example, you might choose 11, 19, and 23. Those are the examples we will use here.
3. Start with Pumpkin 11. Use four of the blank pumpkins to write 11 out these four ways: "Eleven," "10 + 1," "1 ten 1 one," and one ten block strip next to one single block.
4. Repeat Step 3 for 19, filling out the remaining four pumpkins (Nineteen, 10+9, 1 ten 9 ones, and 1 ten block strip and 9 single blocks), and again for 23 (Twenty-three, 20+3, 2 tens 3 ones, and 2 ten block strips and 3 single blocks).
5. Mix the pumpkins face up on the kitchen table. Challenge your child to regroup each set (11, 19, and 23). He may need a bit of coaching but talk him through it encouraging him to explain how he knows each pumpkin represents 11, 19 or 23.
6. Now have him write a number on a blank pumpkin. Can he write this number all 5 ways and complete the set? If he hesitates, pick your own number and work through yours at the same time. This is a good opportunity to make sure he understands what each variation means and how all five variations represent the same number.