Subitising

'Subitising is the instant recognition of numericy in a group' (Clements, 1999). This means that children are able to recognize the numbers without counting. There are two forms of subitising:

1. Perceptual subitising.

"Recognizing a number without using other mathematical processes" (Clements 1999,p. 401).

For example if the teacher shows two oranges on the board and ask the children how many oranges are there, the children may be able to show two with their hands and say 'Two'.  The children may not have to count the number of oranges but somehow they are able to see that there are two oranges.

    2. Conceptual subitising.
"Recognizing the number pattern a s a composite of parts and as a whole, for example: an eight-dot domino" (Clements, 1999,p.401).  

Children may see the number 5 without even having to count the number  shown on the dice.

A game we all played during workshop 2.