The Stamp Game

Addition, Subtraction

Multiplication, Division

This is done by the children as an individual exercise. By now the child should be able to write his own numbers, but, small sets of cards may be used if wished.

Material

  • A large quantity of wooden stamps of equal size, about an inch square.
  • Stamps of 1,000 are marked 1,000
  • Stamps of 100 are marked 100,etc.
  • Stamps of ‘1 unit’ and ‘1 thousand’ are green.
  • Stamps of ‘1 ten’ are blue.
  • Stamps of ‘1 hundred’ are red.
  • 9 small green skittles.

Direct aim

To give the child the opportunity of carrying out individual exercises.

Age of great interest

5+ years.

Point of interest

The activity involved.

The Stamp Game, Addition: Individual.

  1. One stamp from each category is used, and also a golden bead unit, a ten, a hundred and a thousand. Explain very clearly to the child that each stamp is a symbol for the corresponding category of golden beads. A three-period lesson may be used if necessary. The stamps are a less concrete form than the golden bead material. The child must become very familiar with the fact that ten tens make a hundred. The stamps are presented on the table.
  2. Show the child how to form numbers with the stamps, placing the units on the right. The older child will write the sums in his squared book with a figure in each square. The squares give the position of the categories.
  3. After the child has spent quite a while making numbers, he is shown how to do addition suns with the stamps. The guide demonstrates a simple sum,by placing the two numbers she is using a little apart, and then pushing the whole lot together.She then counts the total number on the stamps.When the child is doing a dynamic (carrying) sum, he should realise that ten units are exchanged for a ten, that ten tens are exchanged for a hundred, and so on.

The stamps are returned to the box after each operation. All the problems are either laid out in the small decimal system cards or written in the child’s book, depending on his age and ability.

Note 1: The changing game may be done here, also the exercise of changing columns. The changing game may be done before addition.

Note 2: He has been doing addition with the stamp game for a while, then let him make up a sum in his book and ask him to do it.

E.g.      2,348

        +  1,671 

   4,019

Ask him: “What kind of sum have you just done?”“When you added the numbers together, what was your total?”

Changing Columns in the stamp game

The children must first have done a lot of work with all the addition exercises, in particular with the decimal system golden bead changing game.

Group Lesson

1. Give the children a number, e.g. 4362 and lay it out with the stamps.

2. ‘Now I wonder if I could make the same number in any other way- yes, I could take:

      • 4 thousands
      • 3 hundreds
      • 6 tens
      • 2 units’ (lay it out with the stamps).

3. ‘Can anyone think of another way to make the number 4362?’

4. Discuss the children’s attempts with them and how they could express 4,362 another way.

Much time is needed at this stage, in ‘changing’ with the material.

Individual Work

1. For their own work, the children may work with a friend.

2. Give them prepared slips, e.g. ‘Make 12 hundreds in as many ways as you can’.

Note: The more time the children spend now on changing column exercises with the golden bead material and the stamp game, the easier they will be able to do the operations and the later exercises with the bead frames, etc.

The Stamp Game, Subtraction

Individual Lesson

1. The Directress writes a simple sum in the child’s sum book.

2. She lays out the stamps according to the first number.

3. She says:“Now we are going to subtract 3455. How many units are we subtracting? 5-so we shall take away 5 units. How many tens? 5 so we take away 5 tens. How many hundreds? 4 we take away 4 hundreds. And how many thousands? 3,”

4. She writes the answer in the child’s book.

 

The Stamp Game, Multiplication

The child must have a thorough knowledge of multiplication in the decimal system with golden beads. Use either the child’s sum book or decimal system small cards.

Individual Lessons

First Lesson

1. Write in his book, e.g.       2133

2133    +

2133

2. Ask him what ‘+’ means, and what he notices about the numbers–they are all the same!

3. Tell him that there is a shorter way of writing it, i.e. 2133 x

          3

4. Explain that ‘x’ is the sign which shows what type of sum we are doing. We write the multiplicand once, i.e. the quantity we are going to multiply. We place the ‘x’ sign beside it, and the multiplier underneath.

Second Lesson

1. Taking the box of stamps, say “How many times are we multiplying 3 units?” “Three times”.

2. Put out three separate vertical groups of 3 in the units’ place. If there isn’t enough room on the child’s desk for the stamps to be laid out in rows, he may place them in bundles. 

3. Likewise 3 groups of 3 in the tens’ place, and so on.

4. “Now we have the number 2133 three times.

5. We are going to push them all together, and count them. What do we get? 6399″.

6. Write the answer in his sum book.

7. After a while say to the child: “You have the answer 6399. How many times is 2133 contained in it?” “What does the ‘x’ sign mean? In what other way can you write     4232  x?”

                                   4  

The Stamp Game, Division

1. Give the child a sum i.e. 2⟌4282

2. Show him how to take the stamps from the box.

3. Show him how to arrange the 2 green skittles on the mat.

4. Show him how to divide the stamps, starting with the thousands.

5. Show him how to record the answer, i.e. what each unit skittle gets.

Later introduce dynamic division.