Subtracting with Number Dots

When I was in first grade, my teacher taught me about number dots.  I'm a really, REALLY visual person and this system helped me.  I was embarrassed to use my fingers to count as a kid, but using the dots really helped me.  As I got older, I wouldn't even need to touch the dots with the pencil, I could imagine them.

I'm tutoring this summer and I have a student who is really struggling with subtracting.  She is also very visual, so I thought using number dots would help.  They have a whole system called Touch Math.  It's really expensive.  As a teacher, I didn't have a lot of money so I made a lot of things.  I would look through teaching magazines and find games that I could make myself.

I was originally going to buy some fuzzy stickers for the dots, but couldn't find anything.  I then found some sparkly foam and was going to cut it into circles.  Then I found some rhinestone stickers and knew they were perfect for my girly-girl student so that she can add them to the numbers. I just got them at Walmart in the scrapbooking section.

Oriental Trading

If I was teaching a younger student, I would have them practice with these dot markers.  
Hmm...actually, I might just go buy them because I think she would really like them because she loves art.  Plus, I've been wanting to buy them for my son.***P.S. These are great for sight words.  I simply write a sight word big enough to take up the whole page.  Then have your kids paint dots over the word. They LOVE it!***

Lakeshore Learning

  Hopefully this system helps your child as well.

 

Subtraction PowerPoint

When you click on the PowerPoint link, click View (at the top by File), then click Present.

Good luck and I would love to hear if you have any other websites or systems that would help teach number concepts.