Comparing numbers – Year 1 maths lesson
Lesson 6 of 18 in the Year 1 maths course
UK version. UK school years, UK spelling and pounds (£). · US Math Department
A complete 45-minute lesson for Year 1 (ages 5–6) that runs on this page – at school or at home. Every answer is marked straight away, with a worked explanation.
- Time
- 45 minutes + 15 min homework
- Year
- Year 1 (ages 5–6)
- You need
- Paper, a pencil and this page
- Marked
- 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 marked straight away with a worked explanation, so you never have to mark 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 do you know 52 is greater than 25 without counting?”
- Later that day or the next day: the homework (15 minutes), then a practice test.
Watch out for
- Looking at the ones before the tens (thinking 29 > 31). Compare the tens first: 2 tens is less than 3 tens.
- Turning the sign the wrong way. The sign opens its mouth towards the bigger number.
Tip for home: Compare two prices or two scores and say which is greater.
What your child will learn
We are learning to compare and order numbers using more than, less than and the signs <, > and =.
Success looks like
- I can say which number is greater.
- I can use <, > and =.
- I can put numbers in order.
Key words
- greater than
- more than (>)
- less than
- fewer or smaller than (<)
- equal
- the same amount (=)
- order
- put in a line from smallest to largest
What to have ready
- Paper and a pencil
- This page on a computer, tablet or phone
- For the hands-on part: Build two numbers with cubes or counters and line them up side by side to see which is greater. No counters? Draw the two amounts as dots in rows.
The big ideas (for the adult)
To compare two numbers, look at the biggest place first: compare the tens, and only if they match, compare the ones.
The sign > means "is greater than" and < means "is less than". The open side faces the bigger number.
= means both sides are the same amount.
The lesson, step by step
| Part | Time | How it is checked |
|---|---|---|
| Starter: quick recall | 5 min | Marked by Classfern |
| Teaching input | 10 min | Not assessed, self-checked |
| Worked examples and guided practice | 9 min | Not assessed, marked by Classfern |
| Independent practice | 15 min | Marked by Classfern |
| Plenary and exit ticket | 6 min | Marked by Classfern, self-checked |
Starter, "your turn", practice and exit ticket are marked 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 marked instantly.
More practice
More Year 1 maths lessons
- Counting objects
- Counting in 2s, 5s and 10s
- One more, one less, ten more and ten less
- Tens and ones
- Numbers in words
- Number lines
- Number bonds to 10 and 20
- Adding and subtracting
- The equals sign and missing numbers
- Adding and subtracting word problems
- Multiplication and division
- Recognising fractions
- Counting money
- Telling the time
- Measuring length, mass and capacity
- Shapes, position and turns
- Tally charts, pictograms and block diagrams
Curriculum
National Curriculum for England, Year 1: “identify and represent numbers using objects and pictorial representations including the number line, and use the language of: equal to, more than, less than (fewer), most, least”
National Curriculum for England, Year 1: “compare and order numbers from 0 up to 100; use <, > and = signs”
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Our lessons and questions are our own. They are not written or endorsed by any government department, testing agency or exam board.