Ask a second grader what the 7 in 472 is worth and you’ll often hear “seven.” It’s one of the most common mix-ups in early math, and it’s the reason so many kids stall on regrouping later. A good place value lesson fixes it at the root: kids need to see that where a digit sits tells what it’s worth.
That’s exactly what our new Determining Place Value Micro Lesson does. Lexy, one of our Funzy friends, teaches hundreds, tens and ones with base-ten blocks kids can count, reading every word out loud so even early readers can follow along.
Below you’ll find what a Micro Lesson is, what’s inside this one, a quick video tour, and simple ways to use it in class or at home.
- One skill, start to finish: what each digit in a three-digit number is worth.
- Three short parts: Learn (with blocks), Practice (with hints that explain why), and a 5-question Quiz with stars at the end.
- Lexy reads directions, questions and answer choices aloud.
- Works on phones, tablets, Chromebooks, computers and interactive whiteboards.
- Included with a Have Fun Teaching membership. Assign it in HFT Classroom and quiz scores come right back to you.
What is a Micro Lesson?
A Micro Lesson is a short, complete lesson on one skill. It doesn’t just quiz kids on something they haven’t been taught. It teaches first, lets them try with support, and then checks what stuck. Every part is narrated, so a child can work through it independently while you pull a small group.
Learn
Lexy explains the skill step by step, with pictures and blocks that light up as she counts.
Practice
Kids answer a few questions. A wrong answer gets a friendly hint that explains why, then another try.
Quiz
Five questions in mixed styles, then a stars screen that celebrates the score.
HFT Classroom
Assign it to your class and every quiz score is sent back to you automatically.
Inside this place value lesson
The Determining Place Value Micro Lesson moves from concrete to abstract, the way you would teach it at the carpet. First kids meet the blocks: a single cube is one, a rod of ten cubes is ten, and a flat of ten rods is one hundred.
Then Lexy builds 472 in a place value chart. As she counts “one hundred, two hundred, three hundred, four hundred,” each flat lights up, so kids hear and see that the 4 means four hundreds. The last Learn page tackles the classic trap: 506 is not 56, because the zero holds the tens place.
Part 1 · LearnLearn with blocksLexy counts the hundreds, tens and ones as the blocks light up.
Part 2 · PracticePractice with hintsEvery wrong answer gets a hint that explains why.
Part 3 · Quiz5-question QuizTap, type, drag and match, then earn up to five stars.
For teachersScores in HFT ClassroomSee each student’s quiz score and their answers in words.
Practice keeps the support on. Kids find the tens in 239, type how many hundreds are in a number, and drag the right digit into a sentence. If they pick a wrong answer, Lexy doesn’t just say “try again.” She tells them what to look at, like “the tens digit is the middle digit.”
The quiz mixes five question styles so kids show what they know, not just what they can guess: picking the digit in the hundreds place, typing how many tens, matching numbers to their hundreds, tens and ones, filling a blank with a digit from a number bank, and naming what a 7 is worth. Then the stars come out.
See it in action (video)
This one-minute tour shows each part of the lesson, from the counting blocks to the stars screen. If your class likes a worksheet walk-through too, the second video shows the matching printable.
How do you teach place value to 2nd graders?
Place value clicks when kids connect three things: the blocks, the words and the digits. The second grade standard asks students to understand that “the three digits of a three-digit number represent amounts of hundreds, tens, and ones” (Common Core 2.NBT.A.1). Here’s a simple order that works, with or without the Micro Lesson.
Build it
Start with real or printed base-ten blocks. Ten ones make a ten; ten tens make a hundred.
Say it
Count by hundreds, then tens, then ones out loud. Hearing “four hundred” makes the 4 mean something.
Sort it
Put each digit in a hundreds, tens and ones chart. The chart is where the “where it sits” idea lands.
Watch for zero
Numbers like 506 and 408 show kids that zero is a placeholder, not “nothing to write.”
Check it
A short quiz tells you who has it and who needs one more round with the blocks.
Practice it
Follow up with a worksheet or a game so the skill sticks.
Ways to use it in class and at home
Small-group rotation
One station runs the Micro Lesson on tablets while you work with a group at the table.
Whole-class mini-lesson
Put the Learn pages on the board and let Lexy count while kids count along.
Homework or homeschool
Every word is read aloud, so kids can do it at the kitchen table without a grown-up reading to them.
Quick check
Assign it in HFT Classroom before a unit test and see who’s ready.
Members: assign it in HFT Classroom
With a Have Fun Teaching membership, Micro Lessons are included. Assign this place value lesson to your class, and students join with a class link and a picture, with no student emails. When they finish the quiz, you see each score and their answers in words. See how HFT Classroom works.
Practice place value with a worksheet and a game
The Micro Lesson teaches the skill. These two give kids more practice with the same idea, one on paper and one on a screen.
2nd · WorksheetDetermining Place Value WorksheetName the value of each digit in three-digit numbers.
2nd · GameDetermining Place Value GamePlay on any device and practice hundreds, tens and ones.
Want more ideas for the game? Our post on the Determining Place Value Game walks through how it plays. You’ll find even more practice on the place value resources page.
More Micro Lessons
We’re building a whole library of Micro Lessons, one skill at a time, each with its own Funzy teacher. Reading teachers, this one is for you.
Reading · Micro LessonIdentifying Cause and EffectWhat happened, and why? Learn, practice and a quiz.- All grades · Micro LessonsAll Micro LessonsSee every Micro Lesson in one place.
Keep exploring
Get it included with a membership
Every Micro Lesson, plus 6,500+ resources
Members get every Micro Lesson, game, printable, song and video. Try it free for 3 days.
- The Determining Place Value Micro Lesson, included
- Every printable, song and video, Preschool–6th
- Assign Micro Lessons and games in HFT Classroom
- Unlimited downloads, new resources added every week
Place value lesson: questions teachers ask
What grade is the Determining Place Value Micro Lesson for?
It is made for 1st, 2nd and 3rd grade, and it fits the second grade standard best: understanding that the three digits of a three-digit number stand for hundreds, tens and ones. First graders who are ready for bigger numbers and third graders who need a refresher get a lot out of it too.
How long does a Micro Lesson take?
Most kids finish in one sitting. The lesson has three short Learn pages, a few Practice questions and a 5-question Quiz. Because Lexy reads everything aloud and gives hints right away, kids keep moving instead of getting stuck, which makes it easy to fit into a center rotation or a homework night.
Is the Micro Lesson included in a Have Fun Teaching membership?
Yes. Micro Lessons are included with every Have Fun Teaching membership, along with games, printables, songs and videos. Members can start the lesson right away and assign it in HFT Classroom. You can open a free preview first, and memberships start with 3 free days.
How does HFT Classroom show me my students’ scores?
Assign the Micro Lesson to your class in HFT Classroom. Students join with a class link and a picture, with no student emails. When a student finishes the quiz, the score is sent back to you, and you can see each answer in words, so you know exactly which place value idea needs another look.
What devices does the Micro Lesson work on?
It runs in the web browser on phones, tablets, Chromebooks, laptops and interactive whiteboards, with nothing to install. The read-aloud voice works on every device, so kids can use headphones at a center or the whole class can listen together on the board.
Let Lexy teach place value tomorrow.
Open the free preview tonight, or start the full lesson with your membership.
