Number sense is a key indicator of future math success—and now there’s a quick, reliable, and affordable way to screen early numerical competencies in Grades K–1 and identify students at risk for later math struggles. Join the co-developer of the Number Sense Screener in this free, 45-minute webinar to learn about how the tool can help you catch children’s math struggles before they fall behind

1. CATCHING MATH STRUGGLES
EARLY WITH WITH THE NSS
Nancy C. Jordan
University of Delaware
© 2013 Nancy C. Jordan

2. Overview of the NSS
• Number Sense Screener (NSS) is a research-
based tool for screening key numerical
competencies in kindergarten and early first
grade.
• Areas assessed are aligned with the CCSS for
kindergarten mathematics and thus are uniquely
suited for planning interventions.
• Includes 29 items with norms for the fall and
spring of kindergarten and the fall of first grade.
• Individually administered and takes 15–20
minutes to conduct.

3. Kindergarten math is important
• Kindergarten achievement has far-reaching
consequences.
• Kindergarten test scores associated with
college attendance, earning potential, and
financial management, even when
background characteristics are held constant.
• Independent of cognitive ability and social
class, kindergarten math concepts powerful
predictors of adolescent learning outcomes
across content areas.

4. Primacy of number sense
• Although most kindergarten math curricula cover multiple
topics, number sense is of primary importance during
this age period (National Research Council, 2009).
• Virtually all of the kindergarten math topics in the
Common Core State Standards (CCSS) are associated
with number competencies related to knowledge of
• whole numbers
• number relations
• number operations
• Even measurement and geometry standards require
children to use number words and concepts.

5. Individual differences in number sense
• Number sense is heavily influenced by
experience and instruction.
• Low-income children enter kindergarten with less
number knowledge than middle-income children.
• Deficient number sense a core marker for severe
and persistent learning disabilities in
mathematics.
• Good news! Efforts to teach number sense to
high-risk children have resulted in significant
gains math achievement compared to control
groups.

6. Many children enter kindergarten
unprepared for learning math
Despite the importance of early number development and
the growing body of evidence that number sense can be
taught to young children, the National Research Council’s
Committee on Early Childhood Mathematics (2009)
concludes:
Most early childhood programs spend little focused
time on mathematics, and most of it is low in
instructional quality. Many opportunities are missed
for learning mathematics over the course of the
preschool day (p. 339).

7. What is number sense?
• Generally agreed that number sense in the 3- to 6-year-old
range involves interrelated abilities involving
numbers, relations, and operations, such as:
• immediate recognition of small quantities
• counting items in a collection to at least 5 with knowledge that
the final count word indicates how many are in the set
• discriminating between small quantities (e.g., 4 is greater than
3, 2 is less than 5)
• comparing numerical magnitudes (e.g., 5 is 2 more than 3)
• operating on small sets by adding or taking away items

8. NSS is relevant to response to intervention (RtI)
service delivery models
The NSS can help professionals to:
1) screen and identify students at risk for math
difficulties early,
2) develop evidence-based interventions, and
3) adjust instruction according to students’
abilities

9. NSS subareas
• Number
• Counting (n = 3)
• Number recognition (n = 4)
• Relations
• Number comparisons (n = 7)
• Operations
• Nonverbal calculations (n = 4)
• Story problems (n = 5)
• Number combinations (n =6 )

10. Counting knowledge
“Here are some stars. I want you to count
each star. Touch each star as you
count.” Turn over paper and ask, “How
many stars were on the paper you just
saw?”
“Count as high as you can.”

11. 13, 37, 82, 124
Number recognition

12. • What number comes right after 7?
• What number comes two numbers after 7?
• Which number is closer to 5: 6 or 2
Number comparisons examples

13. Nonverbal calculations

15. Story problems examples
Jill has 2 pennies. Jim gives her 1 more
penny. How many pennies does Jill
have now?
Kisha has 6 pennies. Peter takes away 4
of her pennies. How many pennies
does Kisha have now?

16. Number combinations examples
How much is 4 and 3?
How much is 2 and 4?
How much is 7 take away 3?
How much is 6 take away 4?

17. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Ways to observe calculation strategies:

18. Some research findings with the NSS:
• The ability to solve simple combinations -- even at the
very beginning of K -- are most strongly predictive of math
achievement from first through third grades (about .7).
• Kindergartners’ abilities to compare numbers and solve
add/subtract number combinations uniquely predict
calculation fluency in second grade, over and above
working memory, spatial ability, and language
• Simple story problems are especially problematic for
children from low-income families, who show little growth
in this area between K and first grade.
• High internal reliability
• Convergent and divergent validity.

19. Thanks for joining us!
To order:
www.brookespublishing.com
1-888-638-3775
To learn more:
http://www.brookespublishing.com/re
source-center/screening-and-
assessment/nss/