A learner represents a contextual problem by assigning objects one-for-one to the quantities involved and arranging them to show joining, separating, or comparing, making the unknown quantity and the corresponding addition or subtraction relationship visible. The objects model quantities rather than merely depict the story, supporting problems with whole numbers within 20; multiplication, division, fractions, and generalized symbolic modeling are not included at this level.
Use small objects, such as counters, to show each number in the story. Put one object for each item, then arrange the groups to show what happens.
Example:
There are 7 birds on a fence. Then 5 more birds join them. How many birds are there now?
Make a group of 7 counters for the birds already on the fence:
● ● ● ● ● ● ●
Make a second group of 5 counters for the birds that join:
● ● ● ● ●
Joining means put the groups together:
● ● ● ● ● ● ● + ● ● ● ● ●
Count all the counters. There are 12.
Write the addition sentence:
The counters make the joining action clear: 7 birds and 5 more birds make 12 birds altogether.
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