Large Number Cards

What are the Large Number Cards?

In Montessori, there are four Large Number Cards. Each large card has a specific number on it, for example, ‘one unit’ card with the symbol written in green, ‘one ten’ card with the symbol written in blue, ‘one hundred’ card with the symbol written in red, and ‘one thousand’ card with the symbol written in green. These cards are kept in a wooden container, with specific segments for each card.

How are the Large Number Cards presented?

The Large Number Cards are presented to the child in a three-period lesson. This activity is always presented to the child after the three-period lesson for the Presentation Tray, as in Montessori we move from concrete to abstract. The Presentation Tray is concrete and the Large Number Cards are abstract.

In this three-period lesson, the child learns the names of the symbols, for example, 1, 10, 100, and 1000 in the written form.

First period: the directress introduces each symbol to the child one by one, she says the name of each one and asks the child to repeat it after her. She isolates each card by placing it to one side.

Second period: the directress spends a lot of time in this period. She places all four cards in front of him and asks him to show her the specific cards she asks for.

Third period: the directress asks the child if he can tell her the names of each card as she places one card at a time in front of him. She isolates each one by placing it to one side.

The directress consolidates the lesson only if the child has fully grasped the concept.

What does a three-period lesson with the Large Number Cards teach the child?

This activity promotes the child’s memory, it helps the development of the child’s mathematical mind, the child learns how to identify one unit, one ten, one hundred, and one thousand in a more abstract form, as well as this activity prepares the child’s understanding for place value.

Looking for more Montessori activities?

Here is a list of all the Montessori Maths activities including Early Maths, Introduction to the Decimal System, Seguin Boards, The Hundred Board, The Short Bead Stair, Bead Chains, The Snake Game, Group Operations, The Large Number Rods, Recording with the Small Number Rods, The Short Bead Stair, The Strip Boards, The Boards, The Stamp Game, The Abacus, The Dot Game, and Fractions. Just click on the page you want to learn about to go there.