Numbers & Counting
Counting and Number Names (1 to 100)
When we count, we say numbers in order: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 … all the way to 100. Each number is one more than the number before it.
Numbers also have names. For example, 7 is seven, 14 is fourteen and 40 is forty. Counting forward means going up (2, 3, 4 …) and counting backward means going down (4, 3, 2 …).
- Counting forward adds 1 each time; counting backward subtracts 1.
- The number just after a number is 'one more'; just before is 'one less'.
Comparing and Ordering Numbers
To compare two numbers we see which is bigger or smaller. A number with more tens is bigger. If the tens are equal, the one with more ones is bigger.
We can put numbers in order from smallest to largest (ascending) or largest to smallest (descending).
- More tens means a bigger number; compare ones only when tens are equal.
- Ascending = small → big; descending = big → small.
Number Patterns & Reasoning
Numbers often follow a pattern — a rule that repeats. Skip counting by 2s (2, 4, 6, 8) or by 5s (5, 10, 15, 20) makes patterns. In olympiads you find the rule, then the next number.
You also reason about positions — like who is 2nd or 5th in a line.
- Find the rule (e.g. +2, +5, +10), then continue the pattern.
- Ordinal numbers (1st, 2nd, 3rd …) tell position, not how many.