Number lines – Grade 3 math lesson
Lesson 7 of 15 in the Grade 3 math course
US version. US grades, US spelling and dollars ($). · UK Maths Department
A complete 45-minute lesson for grade 3 (ages 8–9) that runs on this page – at school or at home. Every answer is graded right away, with a worked explanation.
- Time
- 45 minutes + 15 min homework
- Grade
- Grade 3 (ages 8–9)
- You need
- Paper, a pencil and this page
- Graded
- Instantly, with explanations
For parents: how to use this lesson
You don't need to know this topic yourself. The lesson explains each step on screen, one tidy step at a time. Every answer is graded straight away with a worked explanation, so you never have to grade anything.
- Read what your child will learn and the big ideas together.
- Press Start the lesson below and sit with your child for the teaching and the worked examples (about 19 minutes).
- Let them do the practice on their own. They choose Getting started, On track or Challenge – start on On track and move up after a few right in a row.
- Finish with the exit ticket and the talk question: “How did you work out what each small step was worth?”
- Later that day or the next day: the homework (15 minutes), then a practice test.
Watch out for
- Counting the marks instead of the jumps. Count the gaps between marks, not the marks themselves.
- Assuming every step is worth 1. Check the labels: the steps might be 2, 5 or 10.
Tip for home: Use a ruler or tape measure as a number line and find numbers on it.
What your child will learn
Learning goal: read, mark and estimate numbers on a number line.
Success looks like
- I can work out what each step is worth.
- I can read a marked number.
- I can estimate where a number goes.
Key words
- number line
- a line with numbers marked in order
- interval
- the gap between two marks
- estimate
- a careful guess
- halfway
- exactly in the middle
What to have ready
- Paper and a pencil
- This page on a computer, tablet or phone
- For the hands-on part: Draw a long number line on paper or with chalk. Mark 0 and 100, then halfway, then guess where other numbers go. No number lines? A tape measure works as a number line too.
The big ideas (for the adult)
A number line shows numbers in order with equal gaps. First find what each small step is worth.
To work out a step, take the gap between two labeled numbers and divide by the number of jumps.
To estimate, find the halfway point and decide which end the number is nearer to.
The lesson, step by step
| Part | Time | How it is checked |
|---|---|---|
| Starter: quick recall | 5 min | Graded by Classfern |
| Teaching input | 10 min | Not assessed, self-checked |
| Worked examples and guided practice | 9 min | Not assessed, graded by Classfern |
| Independent practice | 15 min | Graded by Classfern |
| Closure and exit ticket | 6 min | Graded by Classfern, self-checked |
Starter, "your turn", practice and exit ticket are graded by Classfern. Worked examples and teaching are not assessed. The hands-on task and the reflection are self-assessed. Explanations in talk are judged by the parent and not recorded.
The lesson
It runs here on the page. No sign-up and no names – progress is kept only in this browser.
Homework and practice at home
15 minutes: 8 practice questions, 3 multiple-choice questions and 2 to remember from earlier work, then a short reflection. New questions every time, all graded instantly.
More practice
More Grade 3 math lessons
- Multiplication facts
- Multiplication and division
- Solving word problems
- Rounding to the nearest 10, 100 or 1,000
- Adding with the standard algorithm
- Subtracting with the standard algorithm
- Equivalent fractions
- Recognizing fractions
- Comparing and simplifying fractions
- Area of rectangles
- Perimeter
- Line plots
- Bar graphs, picture graphs and tables
- Elapsed time and schedules
Curriculum
Common Core State Standards 3.NF.A.2.b: “Represent a fraction a/b on a number line diagram by marking off a lengths 1/b from 0. Recognize that the resulting interval has size a/b and that its endpoint locates the number a/b on the number line.”
Common Core State Standards 3.NF.A.2.a: “Represent a fraction 1/b on a number line diagram by defining the interval from 0 to 1 as the whole and partitioning it into b equal parts. Recognize that each part has size 1/b and that the endpoint of the part based at 0 locates the number 1/b on the number line.”
Our lessons and questions are our own. They are not written or endorsed by any government department, testing agency or exam board.