Builds on
Counting and subitising come together here to count and compare larger groups.
By now a child can name numbers and recognise small amounts at a glance. This part of Foundation puts those skills to work on a bigger, more useful question: how many are here, and which group has more? Children learn to count collections of up to twenty objects accurately, to compare two collections and say which has more, fewer or the same, and — crucially — to explain how they know. That reasoning is what turns counting from a memorised routine into real mathematical thinking.
Count a bigger group
With bigger groups, a child has to count carefully — touching each one once, in order, not losing track. Laying objects in rows of five (like this) makes it far easier. Press Count one more and say each number out loud together.
Counting bigger groups carefully
Counting a larger collection tests every counting skill at once. The child must touch or track each object exactly once, say the number names in order without skipping, keep the counted objects apart from the uncounted ones, and remember that the last number said is the total. With a jumbled pile this is genuinely hard, and miscounts are normal. A child who counts twelve scattered objects and gets eleven has not failed — they lost track, which is exactly the skill practice builds. Arranging objects in a line, or pushing each one aside as it is counted, makes it far easier and is worth teaching explicitly.
Two ways to compare
Comparing two collections is the heart of this idea, and there are two good ways. The first is to count each group and compare the numbers: eight is more than five, so the first group has more. The second often works better for young children and needs no counting at all — matching one to one. Line the groups up side by side and pair each object with one in the other group. If a group has objects left over with no partner, it has more. If they pair up exactly, the groups are equal.
Which group has more?
Count the blue group, then the orange group. The bigger number tells you which has more — and when the numbers are equal, the groups are the same. Count each side out loud with the child before pressing Show the count.
Match them up, no counting
You do not always need to count to compare. Pair each blue dot with an orange one. Whichever row has dots left over with no partner is the bigger group. This gives a child a direct sense of “more” and “fewer”.
The amount does not change
There is a subtle idea here that trips up many young children. The number of objects does not change just because you spread them out or push them together. Five buttons in a tight cluster and the same five spread across the table are still five. To an adult this is obvious, but a young child often believes the spread-out group has more, because it looks bigger. This is a famous, completely normal stage. The cure is gentle experience: count both arrangements, or match them, and let the child discover the amount has not changed.
Spreading out changes nothing
Many young children think the spread-out group has more, because it looks bigger. It does not. These are the same five dots, close together or spread wide. Count both ways with the child, or match them, and let them discover the amount never changed.
The most important question
When a child says one group has more, the valuable question is not whether they are right but “how do you know?” A child might say “I counted them and got seven and six”, or “when I matched them up, these had no partner”. Both are excellent explanations. Asking for them reveals whether the child truly understands, strengthens the link between the action and the conclusion, and builds the habit — right from the start — of treating mathematics as something you can explain, not just answers to produce.
How do you know?
A reasoning built on counting and comparing the numbers.
The most important question in this whole topic is not “which has more?” but “how do you know?” Both answers above are excellent mathematics. Asking a child to explain shows whether they understand, and builds the habit of justifying their thinking.
Which has more? — a game
A game for the child. Look at both groups and tap the side with more — or “same” if they match. Count them or pair them up to check. Nothing is saved.
How to use these with a child
Count larger groups together, and teach the child to line objects up or move each one aside as they count so they do not lose track. Put two groups side by side and ask which has more, then which has fewer. Try matching one to one as well as counting, so the child has both strategies. Spread a group out and squash it together and count again, letting the child see the amount stays the same. And every single time, ask the gentle question that builds a mathematician: “how do you know?”