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Place value

Place value is really important when building up numbers. The order the digits are written in a number determine its value.

A number can be made of more than one digit.

We use place value headings, like 'ones', 'tens', 'hundreds' and 'thousands' to help us understand the value of each digit.

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Watch: Numbers to 1,000

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Example 1

How do you represent the number 167 with a place value chart?

The number 167 is made of the digits 1, 6 and 7.

We can use a place value to chart to express the number 167 like this:

A table showing '1' in Hundreds column, '6' in Tens column, and '7' in Ones column

In other words, 1 hundred, 6 tens and 7 ones.

This number can also be represented in other ways without using numbers. Each pictorial representation in the slideshow below shows 167.

Image gallerySkip image gallerySlide 1 of 3, A place value chart showing the number 1, 6 7 represented under columns showing hundreds, tens and ones, Place value chart A place value chart can also use dots to represent the digits. The dots can be counted to find 1 hundred, 6 tens and 7 ones.

Remember, if the digits were put in a different order, the number would change completely.

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Example 2

Let's rearrange the digits 1, 6 and 7 into 671 to see how it changes the number.

A place value table with 6 in hundreds column, 7 in tens column and 1 in ones column
A place value table with 6 counters in the hundreds column, 7 in tens column and 1 counter in the ones column

Base 10

671 represented in base 10 blocks

Place value counters

6 hundred counters, 7 tens counters and a one counter

The same digits have been used but they are in a different order. Their value completely changes.

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Example 3

Ellie wants to show the number 345 using place value counters. Can you help her?

The first thing you need to do is partition the number. That's 3 hundreds, 4 tens and 5 ones.

3 hundreds
3 hundreds counter
4 tens
4 tens counters
5 ones
five ones counters

Now put them together to represent 345.

345 represented with place value counters

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Activity 1

Dinosaur digits

Click on the image below to see if you can make the correct number.

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Activity 2

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Activity 3

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Play our fun maths game Guardians: Defenders of Mathematica. game

Use your times tables and more maths skills to defeat monsters and reclaim the Kingdom of Mathematica

Play our fun maths game Guardians: Defenders of Mathematica
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