Context and Overview

This lesson focuses on developing counting on strategies, which help students add numbers efficiently by starting from a known number and counting up. The approach incorporates hands-on materials and kinesthetic activities designed to engage grade 3 learners, particularly those with ADHD, supporting active participation and deeper cognitive connections. The lesson also honours the Anishinabe culture through a storytelling connection and incorporates local community values of observation, patience, and collaboration.

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Curriculum Alignment: Quebec Education Program (MEES)

Broad Area of Learning

• Mathematical Competency: Solving a situational problem
• Competency targeted: Carry out a situational problem by selecting and applying appropriate strategies (MEES, Cycle 2, Mathematics)
• Learning Domain: Number Sense and Numeration
• Specific Learning Outcome: "Add and subtract whole numbers less than or equal to 1,000 using personal or known strategies, such as counting on, mentally or with tools." (MTH-314-03)
• Cross-disciplinary Competency: Exercise critical judgment, Mobilize personal and cultural knowledge

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Learning Objectives

By the end of this 50-minute lesson, students will be able to:

• LO1: Demonstrate the ability to solve addition problems using the counting on strategy with manipulatives and visually.
• LO2: Describe the counting on method orally, explaining how it helps with efficient addition.
• LO3: Engage cooperatively in pairs or groups during physical and hands-on activities.
• LO4: Connect mathematical concepts to cultural contexts through storytelling and respect for relationships as taught in Anishinabe traditions.

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Materials Needed

• Small wooden or stone counting tokens (representing traditional Anishinabe natural materials such as small pebbles or carved wooden beads)
• Number cards (0 to 20) laminated and colourful
• A large cloth or mat with drawn or printed pathways to “travel” along counting numbers (similar to a board game track)
• Whiteboards and dry erase markers
• A short Anishinabe story or symbolic object to introduce the cultural listening moment
• Visual timer for ADHD focus support

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Lesson Structure (50 minutes)

1. Introduction & Engagement (10 minutes)

• Gather as a circle on the floor.
• Briefly share a story from Anishinabe oral tradition related to the importance of counting or observation (e.g., a story about how the Anishinabe people counted stars, animals, or harvests carefully to maintain balance with nature).
• Introduce the counting on strategy, explaining it like “starting from a friend’s doorstep and counting up how many steps it takes to get to a new place.” Use number cards 5 and 8 as example.

Teacher prompts:
“Imagine you need to count how many berries you have. You start with 5 berries, then you count 8 more. Instead of starting at 1 each time, we will start from 5 and count forward.”

• Show a simple equation on the board: 5 + 8 = ?
• Demonstrate counting on by moving tokens from 5 and adding 8 more one by one while speaking aloud.

2. Activity 1: Interactive Counting Path Game (20 minutes)

• Use the pathway mat on the floor representing numbers from 0 to 20.
• Students play in pairs or triads taking turns starting at a number on the path (e.g., 4). They roll a dice or pick a number card to add (e.g., +6) and physically hop forward on the mat counting aloud from the starting number up to the sum.
• Each step forward is a counting on movement.
• Students place wooden tokens at their endpoint to mark their position.
• Emphasis on talking through the counting process aloud, supporting verbal working memory for ADHD students.
• The teacher circulates, gently guiding and praising use of the counting on strategy.

3. Activity 2: Story Problem Manipulatives (15 minutes)

• Present a culturally relevant story problem involving gathering natural items (e.g. “You found 7 sweetgrass bundles, then you found 5 more in the forest. How many do you have now?”).
• Students use the wooden tokens to model the problem: first placing 7 tokens, then counting on 5 more tokens, verbalizing each count.
• After modeling, students write or draw their process on mini whiteboards to express understanding.
• Students share their thought process with a partner or small group, practicing oral explanation and reinforcing language skills.

4. Closing Reflection and Review (5 minutes)

• Circle gathering. Ask a few volunteers to explain how counting on helped solve problems today.
• Connect back to the Anishinabe story and values: “Just like we listen carefully to stories to understand our world better, counting on helps us understand numbers and solve problems.”
• Use a visual timer to mark lesson end, supporting transition.

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Differentiation and ADHD Supports

• Frequent movement breaks integrated naturally through hopping game
• Use of tactile wooden tokens supports sensory engagement
• Clear, concise visual and verbal instructions
• Pair work to encourage collaboration and peer modelling
• Oral repetition to strengthen memory
• Visual timers and predictable structure reduce anxiety
• Incorporation of cultural content to increase relevance and connection

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Assessment Strategies

• Ongoing formative assessment during activities by teacher observation noting:
  • Ability to count forward from a starting number without recounting from 1
  • Use of tokens correctly to model addition
  • Participation and verbalization of thought processes
• Review of whiteboard drawings and written explanations for conceptual understanding
• Exit question: “How does counting on help us add numbers faster than counting from 1 every time?”

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Extensions and Future Connections

• Integrate addition word problems from Anishinabe seasonal activities for future lessons
• Use local natural materials for homemade math manipulatives
• Develop a classroom counting journey mural reflecting Anishinabe landscapes with addition steps

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Teacher Reflection

This lesson harnesses movement, storytelling, hands-on materials, and peer interaction to address core numeracy skills suited to learners with attentional challenges and cultural pride in a Northern Quebec Anishinabe community. The counting on strategy builds a foundation for mental arithmetic while the culturally relevant context fosters identity and engagement.