NCERT Joyful Mathematics, Class 1, textbook pages 33–47
How to teach Class 1 Maths Chapter 4, Making 10, at home
Zero, pairs of 10, numbers 10 to 20, taught with things you already have at home: a 10-minute activity, a game for the week, a 5-day plan and the mistakes to watch for.
NCERT Class 1 Maths Chapter 4 Making 10: what it teaches
Ten is the most important number in the book. Your child learns that zero is a number, that pairs like 7 and 3 make 10, and that 14 is “ten and four”. Everything in later classes rests on this idea.
Why it matters later. Ten is how our number system works. Knowing pairs that make 10 speeds up every sum in Classes 1 to 3, and seeing 14 as “ten and four” is exactly what place value means in later chapters.
See it: this chapter in pictures
You need
- an egg tray cut to 10 cups, or a ten frame drawn on paper
- 20 buttons or rajma
- a rubber band
- 20 ice-cream sticks
Tonight’s 10 minutes
- Put 4 buttons in a line and take one away at a time until none are left. Say “zero buttons” for the last one.
- Fill the ten frame partly and ask “How many more to make 10?” Do this every day; speed comes on its own.
- Play the finger game: you show 6 fingers, your child shows the fingers that are still folded down (4).
- Bundle 10 sticks with the rubber band. Add loose sticks and say it the long way: “ten and three is thirteen.”
Words to use
- zero
- ten
- pair of 10
- ten and …
- how many more
Watch for
- Writing 14 as 41. The word says the four first. Always say “ten and four” and keep the bundle on the left.
- Treating zero as “nothing, not a number”. Use it in answers: “How many elephants in the kitchen? Zero.”
What it sounds like at home
A short example of the conversation. Your words will differ; the questions are what matter.
YouI’ve put 7 buttons in the ten frame. How many empty boxes?
Your child3.
YouSo 7 and how many make 10?
Your child3.
YouHere’s a bundle of ten and 5 more sticks. Say it the long way.
Your childTen and five… fifteen.
A game for this week: Make 10 snap
- Take the cards Ace to 9 from a pack (Ace is 1).
- Deal them face down in a grid.
- Turn over two. If they make 10, keep them. If not, turn them back.
- The player with more pairs wins.
A 5-day plan, 10 minutes a day
- Day 1Vanishing buttons: count down to zero.
- Day 2Ten frame: how many more to make 10?
- Day 3Finger game for pairs of 10.
- Day 4Bundle sticks to show 11 to 20.
- Day 5Make 10 snap game.
Everyday moments to practise
- How many more eggs to fill the tray of 10?
- Counting down to zero before starting a race.
- A packet of 10 pencils: how many if 3 are extra?
- Counting 11 to 20 while climbing stairs.
Quick check
Ask these at the end of the week. Tap to see the answer.
7 and how many make 10?
3.
What is 10 and 6?
16.
Count back from 5 to 0.
5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0.
Ready for the next chapter when your child…
- Knows every pair that makes 10 without counting.
- Says 16 as “ten and six” and can show it with a bundle and sticks.
- Counts back from 10 to 0.
Activities, wording and illustrations are Mathify Kids’ own, following the topics of NCERT’s Joyful Mathematics (Class 1). See the full Class 1 parent guide for every chapter.
Questions parents ask
What are number pairs of 10?
Two numbers that add up to 10: 1 and 9, 2 and 8, 3 and 7, 4 and 6, 5 and 5 (and 0 and 10). Children should know them by heart.
How do I teach numbers 11 to 20?
Use a bundle of 10 sticks and some loose sticks. Say each number as “ten and …”, so 13 is ten and three.
How do I explain zero to a young child?
Take objects away one at a time until none are left and call it zero. Then ask fun questions: how many elephants are in the kitchen?