Math Monsters Episode #10: Counting & Symbolizing

In Episode #10, Counting and Symbolizing, the Monsters are invited to help Cousin Digit do an inventory of fish at his fish store. Because the fish are moving around, it is difficult to get an accurate count. What can they do to determine just how many fish there are? How can they avoid double tagging? A variety of counting strategies are explored to help the Monsters come to understand one -to - one correspondence. Their first attempt is to actually draw pictures of the fish on a piece of paper to represent those in the tank. Another attempt involves the use of colored tally marks. Once the exact number of fish is determined, the Monsters explore ways to symbolize the information. The field trip is to a museum where we learn how other cultures and peoples who lived in earlier times symbolized their numbers.