NCERT Maths Mela, Class 5, textbook pages 1–16
How to teach Class 5 Maths Chapter 1, We the Travellers — I, at home
Large numbers, lakhs and place value, 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 5 Maths Chapter 1 We the Travellers — I: what it teaches
Journeys, vehicles and populations bring numbers bigger than ten thousand. Your child reads and writes numbers in lakhs using the Indian place-value system, places commas correctly, compares big numbers and rounds them.
Why it matters later. Reading and comparing large numbers is needed for all arithmetic with lakhs and crores in Class 6 and beyond.
See it: this chapter in pictures
You need
- digit cards 0 to 9
- a newspaper with big numbers
- a place-value chart drawn on paper (L, TTh, Th, H, T, O)
Tonight’s 10 minutes
- Draw a place-value chart. Write 3,45,672 in it and read it aloud: three lakh forty-five thousand six hundred seventy-two.
- Show where commas go in the Indian system: after the hundreds, then every two digits.
- Find five big numbers in the newspaper and put them in order from smallest to largest.
- Round 3,45,672 to the nearest thousand and to the nearest lakh.
Words to use
- lakh
- ten thousand
- place value
- comma
- greater than
- round to
Watch for
- Putting commas every three digits (345,672) out of habit from other books. In the Indian system: 3,45,672. Say the lakh part first.
- Dropping zeros: writing two lakh five thousand as 2,5000. Fill every place in the chart; empty places get a 0: 2,05,000.
What it sounds like at home
A short example of the conversation. Your words will differ; the questions are what matter.
YouRead this number: 3,45,672.
Your childThree lakh forty-five thousand six hundred seventy-two.
YouHow many thousands in a lakh?
Your child100.
YouRound it to the nearest lakh.
Your child3 lakh, because 4 ten-thousands is less than 5.
A game for this week: Newspaper number race
- Each player gets a newspaper page.
- Find the three biggest numbers in 3 minutes.
- Read them aloud correctly in lakhs.
- Biggest correctly read number wins.
A 5-day plan, 10 minutes a day
- Day 1Place-value chart to lakhs.
- Day 2Commas in the Indian system.
- Day 3Order newspaper numbers.
- Day 4Rounding to thousands and lakhs.
- Day 5Newspaper number race.
Everyday moments to practise
- Population of your city.
- Prices of cars and houses.
- Distances flown by planes.
- Vehicle registration counts.
Quick check
Ask these at the end of the week. Tap to see the answer.
How many thousands make one lakh?
100.
Write four lakh six thousand twenty in figures.
4,06,020.
Which is bigger: 98,765 or 1,00,000?
1,00,000.
Ready for the next chapter when your child…
- Reads and writes numbers up to 10 lakh.
- Uses Indian-system commas.
- Compares and rounds large numbers.
Activities, wording and illustrations are Mathify Kids’ own, following the topics of NCERT’s Maths Mela (Class 5). See the full Class 5 parent guide for every chapter.
Questions parents ask
What is a lakh?
One lakh is 1,00,000, or 100 thousand.
How are commas placed in the Indian system?
After the hundreds, then every two digits: 12,34,567.
How do we round to the nearest lakh?
Look at the ten-thousands digit: 5 or more rounds up.