Lesson 15

Greater Than, Less Than

Warm-up: Number Talk: Add or Subtract 10 (10 minutes)

Narrative

The purpose of this Number Talk is to elicit strategies and understandings students have for adding and subtracting 10 from a two-digit number.

When students notice how the tens place changes while the ones place doesn’t, they are making sense of the base-ten structure of numbers (MP7).

Launch

  • Display one expression.
  • “Give me a signal when you have an answer and can explain how you got it.”
  • 1 minute: quiet think time

Activity

  • Record answers and strategy.
  • Keep expressions and work displayed.
  • Repeat with each expression.

Student Facing

Find the value of each expression mentally.

  • \(35 + 10\)

  • \(52 + 10\)

  • \(52 -10\)

  • \(83-10\)

Student Response

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Activity Synthesis

  • “Which expression has a greater value \(52 + 10\) or \(52 - 10\)? Can you compare without finding the value of the expressions?” (\(52 + 10\) will be greater than \(52 - 10\) because it is getting larger rather than having something taken away.)

Activity 1: Which is Greater, Which is Less? (20 minutes)

Narrative

The purpose of this activity is for students to interpret comparison symbols and compare two-digit numbers based on the value of the digits using drawings, numbers, or words. During the launch, students notice and wonder about two related comparison statements that use symbols rather than words. The teacher creates a chart with the comparison statements and what the symbols mean in words for students to refer to during the activity. Students may use connecting cubes to build each number, use the value of each number’s tens or ones place, or use expressions that show the value of tens and ones to justify their reasoning. Students then circle the true comparison statement.

MLR7 Compare and Connect. Synthesis: After both examples have been presented and discussed, lead a discussion comparing, contrasting, and connecting the different approaches. Ask, “How were your approaches similar when comparing 21 and 12 and when comparing 74 and 78? How were they different?”
Advances: Representing, Conversing
Engagement: Develop Effort and Persistence. Chunk this task into more manageable parts. Check in with students to provide feedback and encouragement after each chunk.
Supports accessibility for: Attention, Social-Emotional Functioning

Required Materials

Required Preparation

  • Write \(78 > 45\) and \(45 < 78\) on a piece of chart paper.

Launch

  • Groups of 2
  • Give students access to connecting cubes in towers of 10 and singles.
  • Display \(78 > 45\) and \(45 < 78\).
  • “What do you notice? What do you wonder?” (The wider part of the symbol points toward the larger number. The point is toward the smaller number. Is this always true? Does the order you write the comparison matter? Does the order of the numbers matter?)
  • 1 minute: quiet think time
  • 2 minutes: partner discussion
  • Record responses.
  • “These are comparison symbols. We can use them to show that one value is greater than or less than another without writing the words. The open side, or the side of the symbol with the greater amount of space between the top and bottom, always faces the greater number.”
  • Record “78 is greater than 45” under \(78 > 45\). Consider writing “greater than” in a different color.
  • “The pointy side, or side of the symbol with less space between the lines, always faces the lesser number.”
  • Record “45 is less than 78” under \(45 < 78\). Consider writing “less than” in a different color.

Activity

  • Read the task statement.
  • 10 minutes: partner work time
  • Monitor for students who:
    • verbally describe the relationship between two numbers using “greater than” and “less than”
    • compare numbers using their place value understanding

Student Facing

Circle the statement that is true in each pair.
Be ready to explain how you know so that others will understand.

\(27 < 17\)

\(17<27\)

\(34 < 36\)

\(36 < 34\)

\(25 < 52\)

\(52 < 25\)

\(24 > 54\)

\(54 > 24\)

\(21 > 29\)

\(29 > 21\)

\(85 > 58\)

\(58 > 85\)

\(45 < 54\)

\(45 > 54\)

\(74 < 78\)

\(74 > 78\)

\(21 < 12\)

\(21>12\)

Student Response

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Activity Synthesis

  • Display \(21 < 12\) and \(21 > 12\).
  • Invite previously identified students to share.
  • “We know that 21 is greater than 12. How do you remember which symbol represents greater than?” (I think about the part of the symbol with a greater amount of space being next to the greater number.)
  • Display \(74 < 78\) and \(74 > 78\).
  • Invite students to share their thinking.
  • “74 is less than 78. How do you know which symbols show this?” (The side of the symbols with less space between the lines needs to be closer to 74.)

Activity 2: True or False Comparisons (15 minutes)

Narrative

The purpose of this activity is for students to determine if comparison statements are true or false and explain why. In the previous activity, students focused on using their understanding of place value to determine if the symbols were facing the appropriate numbers. In this activity, students are encouraged to read the statements from left to right before determining whether the statement is true or false. Encourage students to use the display created in the previous activity to help them interpret the symbols and read the statements.

Required Materials

Launch

  • Groups of 2
  • Give students access to connecting cubes in towers of 10 and singles.
  • Display \(45 < 54\).
  • “In the last activity, we decided that this statement is true. How would we read this statement?” (45 is less than 54.)
  • 30 seconds: quiet think time
  • 1 minute: partner discussion
  • Share responses.
  • Display \(21 > 12\).
  • “We also decided this statement was true. How would we read this statement?” (21 is greater than 12.)
  • 30 seconds: quiet think time
  • 1 minute: partner discussion
  • Share responses.

Activity

  • Read the task statement.
  • “You are going to work with your partner on this activity. Make sure that each partner has time to think on their own and make sense of the problem before sharing your thinking.”
  • 10 minutes: partner work time
  • Monitor for students who determined \(58 = 53\) is false using the values of the tens or ones place to share during the synthesis.

Student Facing

Read each statement.
Determine whether each statement is true or false.
Be ready to explain how you know so that others will understand.

  1. \(17 < 47\)
  2. \(58 = 53\)
  3. \(45 > 63\)
  4. \(39 < 93\)
  5. \(4 = 46\)

If you have time, rewrite each false statement to make it true.

Students with true and false signs.

Student Response

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Advancing Student Thinking

If students discuss whether each statement is true or false, but do not read the statements, consider asking:

  • “How could you use the display we made to help you read the statement?”
  • “Read the statement. What did you notice about the symbol that could help you remember how to say it the next time you read it?”

Activity Synthesis

  • Display answers for students to check their work.
  • Invite selected students to share their explanations for \(58 = 53\).
  • “How can we change this statement so it is true?” (\(58 > 53\))
  • Read the new comparison statement.

Lesson Synthesis

Lesson Synthesis

Display 43 and 48.
“Today we learned symbols that mean 'greater than' and 'less than' and compared more two-digit numbers. Use the words ‘greater than’ to compare the numbers.” (48 is greater than 43.)
“How might I write this using the greater than symbol?” (\(48 > 43\))
 

Display 85 and 65.
“Use the words ‘less than’ to compare the numbers.” (65 is less than 85.)
“How might I write this using the less than symbol?” (\(65 < 85\))
 

“Read each comparison statement to your partner.”

Cool-down: True Comparisons (5 minutes)

Cool-Down

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