Compare and Order Whole Numbers Teaching Resources
Teach how to compare and order whole numbers this school year with printable worksheets, digital activities and more teacher-created resources.
Designed to help students understand the relative size of numbers and learn to arrange them in ascending or descending order, this collection of resources has everything you'll need to build your math lesson plans!
Is this your first year teaching students how to compare whole numbers and order them? Or perhaps you are just looking for some quick tips to help you plan? Read on for a primer from our teacher team, including a look at the different math comparison symbols!
What Is a Comparison Symbol in Math? A Kid-Friendly Explanation
Key to teaching kids how to compare numbers is an explanation of the different comparison symbols that they can use to represent the relationships between different whole numbers.
There are three main comparison symbols or signs that we use in math:
1. Greater Than Sign
The symbol > is known as the greater than sign in maths.
When the greater than sign is used to compare numbers, it tells us the number on the left is larger or greater than the number on the right.
2. Less Than Sign
The symbol < is known as the less than sign in math.
When we are comparing whole numbers, we can use the less than sign to show that the number on the left is smaller or less than the number on the right.
3. Equal Sign
The final sign or symbol used when comparing whole numbers is known as the equal sign, and it looks like this: =.
We use an equal sign to express that two numbers are exactly the same or equal to one another.
- Plus Plan
Number Hunt Description Cards
A set of 32 task cards that have students use their knowledge of place value to find specific numbers.
- Plus Plan
Number Talks - Number Sense Task Cards
Build number sense skills with this set of 24 task cards.
- Plus Plan
Comparing Three-Digit Numbers Task Cards
Practice comparing 3-digit numbers with the symbols , and = with this set of 20 task cards.
- Plus Plan
Number Talks - Building Numbers Task Cards
Build number sense skills with this set of 24 task cards.
- Plus Plan
Number Talks - Near, Far, and in Between Task Cards
Build number sense skills with this set of 24 task cards.
- Plus Plan
Number Talks - Comparing Numbers Task Cards
Build number sense skills with this set of 24 task cards.
- Plus Plan
Comparing Numbers Task Cards
Practice comparing whole numbers with this set of 24 task cards.
- Plus Plan
Greater/Less Than Crocodile Posters
Greater and less than can be easily confused, but Snappy uses visual representation to make it all so much clearer.
- Plus Plan
Place Value War - Number Game
A fun 3-digit place value game for students to play in the classroom.
- Plus Plan
Ascending and Descending Number Posters
A poster explaining what descending order means.
- Plus Plan
5-Digit Place Value - Assessment
Assess your students' knowledge of place value to the ten thousands place with this open-ended worksheet.
- Plus Plan
5-Digit Place Value Warm-Up - Interactive PowerPoint
An engaging 44-slide interactive PowerPoint to use when learning about place value to 5-digits.
- Plus Plan
5-Digit Number of the Day Worksheet
A 5-digit place value worksheet to represent the number of the day in different ways.
- Plus Plan
2-Digit Number of the Day Worksheet
A 2-digit place value worksheet to represent the number of the day in different ways.
- Plus Plan
Comparing and Ordering Numbers
A 60-minute lesson in which students will compare and order 4-digit numbers.
- Plus Plan
Exploring 4-Digit Place Value - Assessment
An assessment task in which students will demonstrate an understanding of place value in the thousands place.
- Plus Plan
Comparing and Ordering Beyond 10,000
A 60-minute lesson in which students will compare and order 5-digit numbers.