Penny Patterns

Can you make sums and differences with 50 pennies?

Click the Print button to print the addition and subtraction mat. You will need 100 counters to do this activity - you can use coins, beans, candies, or whatever you have. Put 50 counters on the triangle. Put some counters on the circle and some on the square, they need to equal 50 if you are adding, and 50 if you are subtracting. Once you have the counters in place, write a math sentence in your lesson notes. Do this ten times so you have ten different math sentences. An example of how to write this in your lesson notes is shown below:

screen shot of lesson notes sample including 50 = 47 + 3 and 52 - 2 = 50

Question

Can you write two or three sentences about the pattern you see? Use the words sum, difference, and equal in your sentences, and write these sentences in your Lesson Notes. Or, you can explain the pattern to your learning coach.

If 35 counters are on the circle and 15 counters are on the square, the sum of the counters on the circle and the counters on the square is 50. The difference between the counters on the triangle and the counters on the circle is 15. The difference between the counters on the triangle and the counters on the square is 35. The number of counters on the triangle is equal to the number of counters on the circle and the number of counters on the square.