Lesson objective: Practice writing comparing values using either addition or subtraction.
This lesson helps to build fluency with comparison statements. Part/part/whole models and cubes are used here because they allow students to compare values using a visual model. This work develops students' understanding that we can compare known quantities by finding the unknown value.
Students engage in Mathematical Practice 1 (Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them) as they notice that they can use the properties of operations and the relationship between addition and subtraction to solve comparison situations using a part/part/whole mat. Students also engage in Mathematical Practice 7 (Look for and make use of structure) as they utilize their knowledge of number sequence when comparing two numbers using “more” and “less" than.
Key vocabulary:
- addend
- addition
- compare
- comparison
- equation
- fewer than
- greater than
- less than
- missing value
- part/part/whole model
- subtraction
- unknown
- value
Special materials needed:
- part/part/whole mat
- cubes or counters
- practice sheet