Mathematics · Class 2

Active learning ideas

Understanding Tens and Ones

Active learning through physical and visual activities helps children grasp the abstract concept of place value by making it concrete. Grouping objects into tens and ones builds a strong foundation for arithmetic operations later. When students see, touch, and discuss bundles of ten, they move beyond rote counting to true understanding.

• CBSE Learning Outcomes
• CBSE: Tens and Ones - Class 2

• 20–40 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 3 activities

Activity 01

• Stations Rotation
• 40 min · Small Groups

Stations Rotation: The Bundle Shop

Set up three stations where students act as shopkeepers. One station has loose matchsticks, the second has rubber bands to make bundles of ten, and the third has 'price tags' where they must match bundles and sticks to a written number.

Why is it easier to count objects in groups of ten rather than one by one?

Facilitation Tip

During The Bundle Shop, ensure each station has enough loose items so students physically group them into bundles of ten to avoid counting errors.

What to look for

Show students a collection of 3 bundles of sticks and 7 loose sticks. Ask: 'How many tens do you see? How many ones do you see? What number does this make?' Record their answers.

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

Activity 02

• Think-Pair-Share
• 20 min · Pairs

Think-Pair-Share: The Mystery Bag

Give pairs a bag with a random number of beads (between 10 and 50). Students first guess the count, then work together to group them into tens and ones to find the exact total, explaining their grouping strategy to another pair.

How does the position of a digit change its actual value?

Facilitation Tip

When using The Mystery Bag, allow students to handle the objects first to reduce anxiety and focus on the mathematical reasoning.

What to look for

Give each student a card with a two-digit number, for example, 52. Ask them to draw the number using bundles (tens) and loose sticks (ones) and write a sentence explaining the place value of the digit 5.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 03

• Inquiry Circle
• 30 min · Small Groups

Inquiry Circle: Building a Number Wall

Assign each group a number. They must represent it using three different methods: drawing bundles, using Rajma seeds on a place value mat, and writing the expanded form (e.g., 30 + 4) on a large chart paper for a gallery walk.

What happens to the number of tens when we add one more to ninety nine?

Facilitation Tip

For Building a Number Wall, assign roles such as recorder or builder to keep all students engaged during the collaborative task.

What to look for

Present the number 99. Ask: 'What happens if we add one more stick to our 99 sticks? How many tens will we have then? How many ones will be left?' Guide students to see the regrouping into 10 tens.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Self-Awareness

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teach place value by connecting visual grouping to written symbols through consistent language. Avoid rushing to abstract symbols; spend time on building and describing quantities. Research shows that students who use multiple representations—concrete, pictorial, and symbolic—develop stronger place value understanding. Encourage peer explanations to reinforce language and reasoning.

By the end of these activities, students should confidently identify tens and ones in two-digit numbers, explain their reasoning with materials, and apply this understanding to simple regrouping tasks. They should verbalise numbers using place value language, such as 'forty-three' instead of 'four and three'.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During The Bundle Shop, watch for students who read 21 as 'two' and 'one' instead of twenty-one.

  Have students place two bundles of ten sticks and one loose stick on the place value mat, then say aloud together: 'Twenty and one make twenty-one.' Repeat with three different two-digit numbers.

• During Building a Number Wall, watch for students who write 105 as 1005 because they hear 'hundred' and 'five'.

  Model the number on the wall using base ten blocks: one flat for 100, zero rods for 0 tens, and five units for 5 ones. Ask students to count the blocks and say, 'One hundred zero tens five ones' before writing the number.

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Methods used in this brief

• Stations Rotation
• Think-Pair-Share
• Inquiry Circle