Teen Numbers with St Thomas the Apostle Catholic Primary School

https://player.vimeo.com/video/1160043234

[On-screen text: Strengthening number sense at home — Teen numbers with St Thomas the Apostle Catholic Primary School]

[IMAGE: Victorian Mathematics Ambassadors Emily Glen and Patrick Kennedy stand and face camera]

[Emily Glen] Hi, I am Em, and I’m here to talk to you about teen numbers. Once learned, we don’t often think about the numbers 11 to 19 as being special, but when first introduced, teen numbers can cause difficulties due to how different they are from other numbers.

They don’t follow the rules of naming for all numbers 20 and above, but with lots of practise and using the language 10 and some more, we can support learners to feel confident with this tricky group of numbers. Here’s Ben from St. Thomas the Apostle with some of his students showing how he teaches teen numbers in the classroom and ways to support further at home.

[On-screen text: Classroom demonstration Ben Dixon (teacher) and students, St Thomas the Apostle Catholic Primary School]

[IMAGE: Ben Dixon, teacher, sits at a classroom table facing 6 students who have coloured blocks in front of them]

[Ben Dixon] I’m going to give you a number. Can you make your own number for me please? So can you read, what’s this number?

[Student 1] 12.

[Ben Dixon] 12? Can you make that number for me? What’s this number?

[Student 2] 11.

[Ben Dixon] 11, nice. Can you make that number for me? What’s this one?

[Student 3] 20.

[Ben Dixon] Nice. Can you make that number for me? What’s this number?

[Student 6] 14.

[Ben Dixon] Nice. Can you make that number for me? What’s this number?

[Student 5] 19.

[Ben Dixon] 19? Can you make that number for me? Can you make that number for me, please? All right, so I’m going to come around and ask you how many tens, how many more, and what the number is altogether. Okay? Nice. All right, so how many tens?

[Student 1] One.

[Ben Dixon] One 10. And how many more?

[Student 1] Two.

[Ben Dixon] All together is?

[Student 1] 12.

[Ben Dixon] Nice. How many tens?

[Student 2] One.

[Ben Dixon] How many more?

[Student 2] One.

[Ben Dixon] How many all together?

[Student 2] 11.

[Ben Dixon] How many tens?

[Student 3] One.

[Ben Dixon] One? How many more?

[Student 3] Three.

[Ben Dixon] Nice. How many all together?

[Student 3] 13.

[Ben Dixon] Nice job. How many tens?

[Student 4] One.

[Ben Dixon] How many more?

[Student 4] Eight.

[Ben Dixon] And how many all together?

[Student 4] 18.

[Ben Dixon] Nice. How many tens?

[Student 5] One.

[Ben Dixon] How many more?

[Student 5] Nine.

[Ben Dixon] How many altogether?

[Student 5] 19.

[Ben Dixon] Nice. And how many tens?

[Student 6] One.

[Ben Dixon] How many more?

[Student 6] Four.

[Ben Dixon] How many altogether?

[Student 6] 14.

[Ben Dixon] Nice job. Well done, superstars. Good job.

[On-screen text: At home tips Ben Dixon, St Thomas the Apostle Catholic Primary School]

[IMAGE: Ben Dixon (teacher) sits on a classroom table]

[Ben Dixon] Teen numbers to not follow the pattern of our number system, and learners may need a lot of practise to feel confident with them. There are so many opportunities to support learning of teen numbers at home. Counting out loud to 20 with your child both forwards and backwards will give them important practise.

If you’re comfortable, you can also use the prompt 10 and some more at the teen numbers when eating dinner, looking at dates on a calendar, talking about the weather forecast or travelling to school. You could ask, “12 is one 10 and how many more?” Teen numbers are practised at a lot at school. Extra practise that you can do at home will continue to build confidence around these unique numbers.

[On-screen text: Thank you to Ben, students, staff and parents of St Thomas the Apostle Catholic Primary School for their support in producing this video]

[On-screen text: Victoria State Government logo Authorised by the Victorian Government, Melbourne.]

Updated 26 February 2026

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Teen Numbers with St Thomas the Apostle Catholic Primary School

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