Comparing groups of 0-10 (more than, fewer than, equal to)

Tips on how to use this exercise at home and at school.

Comparing groups of 0-10 (more than, fewer than, equal to)

Early maths concepts


In this exercise, the child passively determines relationships between objects such as: equally, more and less. This exercise is one of the most basic in comparison and helps to understand the complete basis for comparing quantities.


What is this exercise good for?
When comparing quantities, the child uses the matching skills he already knows. By forming pairs, we allow the child to form an idea and understand the relationships: equal, less and more. 

In the beginning, the child perceives all situations equally, but if he cannot give a friend candy, for example, he realizes that he has less candy and therefore there are more friends than candy. This correlation is the basis for later understanding of the relationships between numbers.

Who is the exercise suitable for?
It generally belongs in preschool or early school play. In addition to the concepts of number ideas, and rational assumptions, it also develops language skills at the same time.

This exercise is part of the lesson plan for comparison.

Methodological recommendations
Either read aloud the instructions to the child, play them from the app or let the child read them by themselves.

The child is shown two or three groups of pictures and is instructed to decide where there are the same, more or less objects. If the child has difficulty with these situations, we match the pictures together and find the answer by comparing them (e.g.: For each sock in the first picture, find the second sock in the pair in the second picture. If we can no longer find a second pair of socks for a sock in the first picture, it means that there are more socks in the first picture than in the second picture).

We are asking for the number of objects, so we are not interested in their size, location, or rotation. This leads to an abstract understanding of a number that expresses only a number.

In the exercise setup, it is possible to select instructions only for single quantities, i.e. only for: the same, more, or less.  

Tips for similar activities outside the app
This type of practice can be implemented at home by having the child assign one toothbrush to each person in the household, each person has their cutlery at the table, and their cup. We create pairs of Rumcajs and Manka, Bob and Bobek, Pat and Mat, Mach and Shebestova and so on. 

Next, we can compare using dice. You and the child roll the dice and compare: Who got the same, more or less points? 

More ideas for matching activities: 

  • Who got the same, more, less candy?
  • Who is standing on the stairs the same height, higher or lower?
  • Whose building blocks are higher or lower?
  • Who used the same, more, or fewer cubes for the building?