This page offers a collection of hands-on activities using a number slide ruler. These engaging exercises are designed to help children master number bonds up to 20, covering both addition and subtraction. Discover fun games that reinforce number fact families and build a strong foundation for early math skills.

Activities for a Number Slide Ruler

1. Discovering Number Pairs

• Description: The foundational activity to introduce the concept of number bonds.
• Materials: Number slide ruler.
• Instruction: Show the child how the ruler works by sliding it to a number, for example, 6. Read the number pairs aloud from the addition side: “6 + 0, 5 + 1, 4 + 2,” and so on. Explain that these pairs always add up to the number at the top of the ruler.
• Skills Developed: Number bonds, addition, and early number fact recognition.

2. Commutative Property in Action

• Description: An activity to visually demonstrate that the order of the numbers in an addition problem doesn’t change the sum.
• Materials: Number slide ruler.
• Instruction: Slide the ruler to a number (e.g., 7). Point to the pair 6 + 1 and then to the pair 1 + 6. Explain that they are both on the same ruler because they are the same number pair. You can have the child read them out and say, “6 + 1 is the same as 1 + 6.”
• Skills Developed: Commutative property of addition, logical reasoning.

3. Subtraction Facts Practice

• Description: An activity to use the back of the ruler to teach the related subtraction facts.
• Materials: Number slide ruler.
• Instruction: Slide the ruler to a number (e.g., 8). Read the number pairs from the addition side (e.g., 8 + 0). Then, flip the ruler over and read the corresponding subtraction facts (e.g., 8 – 0 = 8 and 8 – 8 = 0). Explain how addition and subtraction are related.
• Skills Developed: Subtraction, inverse operations, and number fact families.

4. The “Missing Pair” Game

• Description: A game that challenges the child to find the missing part of a number bond.
• Materials: Number slide ruler.
• Instruction: Slide the ruler to a number (e.g., 9). Give the child a number and ask them to find its partner. For example, say, “I have 9. My number pair has a 4. What’s the other number?” The child has to find the 4 + 5 pair and say the number 5.
• Skills Developed: Mental math, number bonds, and problem-solving.

5. Speed Challenge

• Description: A timed game to improve quick recall of number bonds.
• Materials: Number slide ruler, and a timer.
• Instruction: Slide the ruler to a number (e.g., 10). Ask the child to say all the number pairs for 10 as quickly as they can before the timer runs out. You can also have them quiz you!
• Skills Developed: Quick recall, mental math, and number bond fluency.

6. “Guess the Number”

• Description: A game that encourages the child to think about a number by its components.
• Materials: Number slide ruler.
• Instruction: Describe a number bond without saying the sum. For example, “My number has a pair of 5 + 3.” The child has to slide the ruler to the correct number (8) to see the number pair.
• Skills Developed: Problem-solving, number bonds, and logical reasoning.

7. Word Problems

• Description: An activity that connects the abstract number bonds on the ruler to real-world scenarios.
• Materials: Number slide ruler.
• Instruction: Tell the child a simple word problem (e.g., “Sara has 3 stickers. Her friend gives her 4 more. How many stickers does she have now?”). Have the child slide the ruler to the number 7 and find the 3 + 4 pair to see the answer.
• Skills Developed: Problem-solving, reading comprehension, and number bond application.

8. Odd and Even Pairs

• Description: An activity that helps children notice patterns of odd and even numbers within the number pairs.
• Materials: Number slide ruler.
• Instruction: Slide the ruler to an even number (e.g., 6) and an odd number (e.g., 7). Ask the child to observe the pairs. For an even number, they will see that it’s made up of either two even numbers or two odd numbers. For an odd number, it’s always made up of one even and one odd number.
• Skills Developed: Number properties, pattern recognition, and critical thinking.

9. Two-Player Quizzing

• Description: A partner game where children can test each other’s knowledge of number bonds.
• Materials: Number slide ruler.
• Instruction: Two children can take turns. One child slides the ruler to a number and asks the other child to name a number pair for that number. They can then check the answer on the ruler.
• Skills Developed: Peer teaching, quick recall, and collaboration.