Comparison of Numbers
4 Minutes
Comparison of numbers for kids teaches how to compare single and multi-digit values using place values and symbols. A short maths lesson in English.
- Counting sweets to find greater and smaller numbers
- Using Alex the alligator's mouth to pick the larger quantity
- Comparing multi-digit numbers with place values and symbols
What this lesson teaches
Comparison of numbers is the mathematical process of determining whether a quantity is greater than, less than, or equal to another quantity. When counting items starting from one, the number that appears first in the count is the smaller or lesser number, while the number that appears later is the greater or bigger number.
Counting to compare quantities
- Counting tells which group has more items and which has less.
- When comparing four sweets and seven sweets, counting reaches four before seven, making four the smaller number and seven the greater number.
- When comparing two chocolates and five chocolates, counting one and two comes first, so two is the lesser quantity.
- Counting continues up to five afterwards, which identifies five as the greater quantity.
Symbols for greater, less, and equal
In mathematics, specific symbols represent greater and lesser amounts instead of writing out the words. The greater than and less than symbol resembles an open mouth that always opens towards the side with the larger number. When two compared quantities are completely identical in size, the equal to symbol is written between them to show they are equal.
Comparing two-digit place values
Counting large numbers one by one to find which is bigger can be very difficult. To solve this, multi-digit numbers are compared by checking their individual place values separately. For two-digit numbers such as 34 and 52, comparison begins at the tens place. The tens place in 52 has a 5, while the tens place in 34 has a 3. Because 5 is bigger than 3, 52 is the greater number.
Comparing numbers with different digit lengths
- A two-digit number and a three-digit number can be compared by matching their place values.
- In a two-digit number such as 98, there is no hundreds digit, so a zero is placed in the hundreds position to write it as 098.
- Comparing 101 and 098 begins by looking at the hundreds place of each number.
- The hundreds place has a 1 in 101 and a 0 in 098, and because 1 is bigger than 0, 101 is the greater number.