Number Street: Forward and Back

Chalk streets with houses numbered 1 to 10 are drawn on the ground; each child lives in a house and moves along the street when the teacher says "one more" or "one less." It builds the number line and adding or taking away one through moving forward and backward.

How to play

1. The teacher draws 4 or 5 parallel streets with 10 large numbered squares, and each child starts on square 1 of a street (1 min).
2. We move forward counting square by square to 10, then walk backward to 1 (3 min).
3. The teacher says "One more!" and we jump one square forward; "One less!", one square back. We say out loud where we are (4 min).
4. Now with "Two more!" or "Two less!": we count the jumps on our fingers so we don't get lost (3 min).
5. Taking turns, one child is the teacher and calls the moves for their street (2 min).
6. To finish, everyone goes to house number 10 for a party with a ten-second dance (2 min).

Rules

• "More" is forward and "less" is backward.
• Going backward, move slowly and look over your shoulder.
• Say the number of the square you're on.

Variations

Adaptations

• Child using a wheelchair: squares are drawn wider and the child rolls along; they can also be their street's caller.
• Deaf or hard-of-hearing child: a paper arrow pointing forward or back plus fingers for the number.
• Autistic child: a small card with the street drawn on it to point to where they are and where they're going.

Learning goals

• Move through the number sequence forward and backward.
• Understand "one more" and "one less" with their own body.
• Move backward with control.

Equipment for a class of 25

• tizas: 6

Teacher tip

Make the squares the size of an easy jump for a 3-year-old (about 16 inches). At first they mix up the direction: draw a big arrow at the start of each street.

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