Number Sense Teaching Resources
Browse printable number sense worksheets, hands-on maths activities and more teacher resources created by teachers for teachers like you!
These resources are aligned with the Australian Maths Curriculum, and each was created by teachers with teachers — and students — in mind to help build foundational maths skills in ways that engage and excite students about numbers!
Want to learn more about number sense? Read on for a primer from our teacher team, including a definition of number sense, how to assess this important maths skill and more!
What Is Number Sense?
In the most basic sense (no pun intended), number sense refers to a student's intuitive understanding of numbers and their relationships. It includes the ability to estimate and compare quantities, understand numerical patterns and relationships and make reasonable judgments about the accuracy of calculations.
When students show an understanding of numbers, their size, relationships,and how they are affected by the four mathematical operations, what they're really showing is their number sense.
In an educational setting, building number sense is closely related to other foundational skills such as problem-solving, critical thinking and logical reasoning. As our students get older, it will become a crucial skill for daily life they will use to manage finances, calculate time and make decisions based on numerical information.
Teach Starter Teacher Tip: Although the names may seem interchangeable, it's worth noting that number sense is not the same as mathematical fluency or memorisation of algorithms, but rather a deep understanding of the underlying concepts and relationships between numbers.
When Does Number Sense Develop?
There is no single year level when we're teaching students number sense — instead, it continues to develop and become more sophisticated as students progress through primary school.
Research suggests that babies as young as 6 months old can distinguish between small and large numbers of objects, and by prep, students are already working on number sense as they begin to learn counting and one-to-one correspondence. At this level, they're also beginning to develop an understanding of quantity and relative size — both key to overall number sense.
Number sense will continue to grow in primary school as students become more adept at recognising and using numbers to solve problems, and it continues into high school and — for many students — into university.
Assessing Number Sense
When we assess students for their number sense skills, there are certain mathematical concepts that they should have under their belts. These include:
- Ability to Recognise Missing Numbers in a Pattern —When kids can fill in missing numbers in a sequence, they're showing that they can make connections between numbers and develop an understanding of the relationships between them.
- Ability to Use Maths Mentals — Students with number sense can use maths mentals to solve problems involving the four basic operations.
- Ability to Engage in Systematic Counting — Children who can count systematically can more easily understand the relationships between numbers, including number magnitude, patterns and sequences.
- Ability to Subitise Numbers — Students can use visual clustering skills to instantly recognise how many objects are in a group without physically counting them.
- Ability to Relate Numbers to Real-World Problems —For example, a student may understand that '3' means 'three objects' or 'three days' or 'three dollars.'
- Ability to Compose and Decompose Numbers — Students use number sense when they break down numbers and put them back together. For example, a student who can break down the number 10 into 8 and 2, then add the two back together to again make 10, is using number sense.
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Frog in a Pond - Colour by Numbers
Colour by numbers is a fun and easy way to help students recognise digits.
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Roman Numeral Sign 1 - 10,000
Roman numerals can be difficult to learn and retain. Use this poster as a visual stimulus in your classroom.
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Number Recognition Assessment Pack
Utilise this Number Recognition Assessment Pack to evaluate your students’ progress in recognising the numbers 0 through 120.
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Busy Binder - Morning Work Pages for Kindergarten
Review daily calendar, maths, literacy, and fine motor skills with a printable morning work pages for kindergarten!
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Search and Find – Back to School
Start the school year with a fun Search and Find maths activity for Year 1 students.
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Number Bonds Subtraction - Worksheet
Practise subtraction using number bonds with differentiated number bond worksheets.
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Secret Number Patterns – Card Game
Keep your secret number pattern hidden as you race to be the first to create number patterns based on given rules.
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Subitising Dominoes
Use these subitising dominoes to give your students practise subitising small collections of objects.
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Subitising Assessment Pack
Utilise our Subitising Assessment Pack to test your students' ability to subitise quantities up to 10.
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Numbers in the Environment Worksheet
Practise identifying numbers in the environment with this "seek-and-find" worksheet.
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Firetruck Colour By Number Worksheet
Build number identification skills with a printable Firetruck Colour by Number Worksheet.
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Number, Name and Ten Frame Match-Up Cards 1-30
Cards to consolidate numerals, names and values up to 30.
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Colour Counting Worksheet
A worksheet to consolidate the concept of numbers and associated values.
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Halve it or Double it! - Maths Game
A hands-on game to play when learning about connecting halving and doubling.
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Number Recognition Worksheet Pack
Use this collection of number recognition worksheets to help your students practise recognising the numbers 0 through 20 in many forms.
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Counting Picture Puzzle Numbers 1-5
Practise counting objects within 5 and matching groups to numbers through this 15-piece camping scene picture puzzle
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Part-Part-Whole - Addition and Subtraction Teaching Presentation
Teach your students how to effectively use a bar model to solve 1-digit addition and subtraction number facts using the part-part-whole strategy.
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Counting and Colouring Basketball I Spy Worksheet
Have a bit of counting and colouring fun with a basketball worksheet for Prep.
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Basketball Maths Craft Activity
Practise 2-3 digit addition (with and without regrouping) with a fun basketball-themed maths craft activity.
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Underwater Colour By Numbers
Colour by numbers is a fun and easy way to help students recognise digits.
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Subitising Worksheets Variety Pack
Incorporate these subitising worksheets into your lessons to give your students practise subitising collections up to 12.
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Count and Graph Worksheet Pack
Explore counting and graphing skills with this set of three worksheets.
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Rounding Numbers Cut and Paste - Worksheets
Provide your students with engaging practise to help them understand rounding with a set of differentiated rounding worksheets.
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Find the Whole From a Percentage Worksheet
Practise how to find the whole from a percentage with this standard-practice worksheet.
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Colour by Number Worksheet - Multiplication Facts (Rabbit)
Bring some colourful fun into your maths lessons with a multiplication colour by number worksheet.
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Real World Applications of Positive and Negative Numbers – Worksheet
Use positive and negative numbers to represent quantities in real-world scenarios with this worksheet.
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0-9 Digit Cards
A set of 0-9 digit cards to be used for numeracy games in the classroom.
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Base Ten Block Matching Cards (Random Numbers 100 - 1000)
Use these base ten block matching cards to help your students practise number recognition and place value skills for numbers up to 1000.
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Sequencing Activities — Numbers 1-9 Sausage Dog
Use our sequencing activities like this sausage dog to help your students practise ordering the numbers 1 - 9.
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Subitising Mazes (Numbers 1 - 10)
Solve our subitising mazes to have fun practising subitising quantities up to 10!
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Ten Frame Printable Templates
Use these printable ten frames in various math lessons to reinforce number sense and other essential skills.
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Subitising to 10 Worksheet
Practise subitising to 10 with your students using this printable worksheet set.
- Number Sense Worksheets
- Number Sense Games
- Number Sense Posters
- Number Sense Templates
- Number Sense for Preschool/Kindergarten
- Number Sense for Foundation Year
- Number Sense for Year 1
- Number Sense for Year 2
- Number Sense for Year 3
- Number Sense for Year 4
- Number Sense for Year 5
- Number Sense for Year 6
- Number Sense for Year 7