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Counting and number names

Count from 1 to 100, learn tens and ones, and write number names like seven, fifteen and forty.

Get the whole book: Maths for classes 1 and 2 (4 lessons, free to print)

Let us begin

The big idea

Numbers are everywhere: the pages in your book, the steps to school and the laddoos on a plate. In this lesson you will count, read and write numbers and their names.

We count 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and keep going. Each number is one more than the number before it. The number after 9 is 10.

After 10 we count in tens: 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 and then 100. A group of ten things is called one ten.

Every two-digit number has tens and ones. In 47 the 4 means 4 tens and the 7 means 7 ones. So 47 is 40 and 7.

Every number has a name too. 1 is one, 2 is two, 11 is eleven, 12 is twelve, 15 is fifteen, 20 is twenty, 40 is forty, 90 is ninety and 100 is one hundred. Be careful with forty: it has no u.

To compare numbers, look at the tens first. 48 has 4 tens and 84 has 8 tens, so 84 is bigger.

Number line from 0 to 10A straight line with the numbers 0 to 10 marked at equal gaps. Under each number its name is written, from zero to ten. 0 zero 1 one 2 two 3 three 4 four 5 five 6 six 7 seven 8 eight 9 nine 10 ten Numbers 0 to 10 on a number line Each step to the right is one more.
A number line shows numbers in order, with the number names written below.

Worked examples

See how it works

  1. Counting in tens

    Count by tens: 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100. Each jump adds one ten. After 30 comes 40, because 30 + 10 = 40.

  2. Tens and ones

    Take 36. Split it: 3 tens and 6 ones. That is 30 + 6 = 36. Its name is thirty-six.

  3. Writing number names

    14 is fourteen. 15 is fifteen. 18 is eighteen. 40 is forty. 52 is fifty-two. Notice that the tens name comes first and the ones name comes second.

  4. Which is bigger?

    Compare 63 and 36. 63 has 6 tens. 36 has only 3 tens. So 63 is bigger than 36.

Try it at home

Ten-bowl counting

You will need

  • About 40 dried beans, small stones or buttons
  • Four small bowls or cups
  • Paper and a pencil

What to do

  1. Count out the beans one by one and put 10 in each bowl.
  2. Count the bowls in tens: 10, 20, 30, 40.
  3. Add 3 loose beans next to the bowls. How many are there in all? Say it aloud: 4 tens and 3 ones is 43.
  4. Write the number and its name on paper: 43, forty-three.
  5. Change the number of loose beans and try again.

Ask a grown-up: Please keep small beans and stones away from babies and from anyone who might put them in their mouth or nose.

Fun fact

The digits 0 to 9 that we use today were first developed in India and then travelled across the world.

Practice sheet

Check what you learned

Write your answers in a notebook, or print this sheet and write on it. When you finish, mark your work with the answer key.

Practice sheet: Counting and number names (Classes 1-2, Maths)

  1. What number comes after 19?
  2. Write the number name for 7.
  3. Fill in the blank: 10, 20, ___, 40.
  4. What number is 3 tens and 5 ones?
  5. Which is bigger, 48 or 84?
  6. Write the number name for 40.
  7. What number comes just before 60?
  8. Write the number for "sixteen".
  9. Fill in the missing numbers: 25, 26, ___, 28, ___.
  10. Put these in order, smallest first: 52, 25, 45.

Answer key

Answers: Counting and number names

Do the practice sheet first, then check here. If an answer is different from yours, read the lesson again and try once more.

  1. 20
  2. Seven.
  3. 30
  4. 35 (30 and 5).
  5. 84, because 84 has 8 tens and 48 has only 4 tens.
  6. Forty.
  7. 59
  8. 16
  9. 27 and 29.
  10. 25, 45, 52.

What next

Keep learning

Get the whole book

All 4 maths lessons for classes 1 and 2 on one page, with every practice sheet and answer key, ready to print.

Maths for classes 1 and 2

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