Last updated 2026-10-01. Written by the TernQuest team. This is for parents of 1st and 2nd graders who have been asked to help with "tens and ones" homework and want to understand what the school is actually building.
What is place value and why does it matter so much?
Direct answer: Place value is the rule that a digit's position sets its size: in 342 the 3 means three hundreds, the 4 means four tens, the 2 means two ones. It matters because almost everything after it depends on it: adding with carrying, subtracting with borrowing, multiplying big numbers, decimals and money are all place value in disguise. A child who can recite "hundreds, tens, ones" but does not really believe a ten is ten ones will hit a wall in 2nd grade arithmetic.
Quotable version: "Place value in one sentence: ten of anything makes one of the next thing over, and that trade goes both ways."
Where it sits in the grade sequence, in line with California Common Core (your school's pacing may differ):
| Grade | Place value expectation |
|---|---|
| Kindergarten | Teen numbers as ten ones and some more ones |
| 1st grade | Two-digit numbers as tens and ones, up to 120 |
| 2nd grade | Three-digit numbers as hundreds, tens and ones, up to 1000; skip count by 5, 10, 100 |
| 3rd grade | Rounding to the nearest 10 or 100; multi-digit arithmetic with strategies |
If you want the full picture of what 2nd grade expects, the 2nd grade math skills checklist puts place value next to the rest of the year.
How do I explain tens and ones with bundling?
Direct answer: Give your child a pile of loose things (straws, craft sticks, dry pasta) and a handful of rubber bands, and have them count out ten and bundle it. Keep going. "How many bundles? How many loose?" That physical act of making a ten out of ten ones, and being able to undo it, is the whole idea. Numbers on paper come after the bundles, not before.
The bundling routine
- Count out a pile, say 34 straws, one by one.
- Bundle every ten with a rubber band. Ask: "How many bundles? How many left over?"
- Say it both ways: "three tens and four ones" and "thirty-four."
- Write it: 34. Point to the 3 and touch the bundles. Point to the 4 and touch the loose ones.
- Now the reverse: "Show me 52." They build five bundles and two loose.
Do this with a different number each day for a week. Include numbers with a zero in the ones (40, 70) and teen numbers (13, 17), which are the ones that trip kids up because the English words are backwards ("thir-teen" says the three first).
Base-ten blocks
If your child's class uses base-ten blocks (small cubes for ones, rods for tens, flats for hundreds), you can get a set or draw them: a small square for a one, a tall bar for a ten, a large square for a hundred. The drawing version is what the teacher will expect on paper anyway.
What is expanded form and how do I check it?
Direct answer: Expanded form writes a number as the sum of its parts: 342 = 300 + 40 + 2. It is the fastest check of whether place value has landed, because a child who has memorized "hundreds, tens, ones" without meaning will often write 3 + 4 + 2 or 300 + 4 + 2.
Three ways to say the same number
| Form | Example |
|---|---|
| Standard | 342 |
| Expanded | 300 + 40 + 2 |
| Word | three hundred forty-two |
| Blocks | 3 flats, 4 rods, 2 cubes |
Practice going in every direction: you say the word form, they write the standard; you write expanded, they build it with blocks. The direction children typically find hardest is from blocks to standard when there are zero tens (4 flats and 6 cubes is 406, not 46).
The zero problem
Zero as a placeholder is where many 2nd graders wobble. "Four hundred six" gets written as 46 or 4006. Bundling fixes it: build 406 with four flats and six cubes, ask "how many rods?", and let them see the empty tens spot that the 0 holds.
What is hard about the leap to a thousand?
Direct answer: Up to 99, a child can picture every number as bundles and loose ones. Hundreds ask them to trust a bundle of bundles, and a thousand is a bundle of those. The leap is less about the size of the number and more about accepting that the same trade (ten of these makes one of those) keeps repeating.
Ways to make a thousand real:
- Build a hundred. Ten bundles of ten straws, taped together into a flat. Now it is a thing, not an idea.
- Count by hundreds. 100, 200, 300 ... 1000, pointing at ten flats. Then count by tens across a hundred: 380, 390, 400, 410. The crossing points are where errors live.
- Skip counting by 5, 10 and 100 from any number is a 2nd grade expectation and a great car game; our guide to skip counting activities has more.
The hundred chart is a useful map for the two-digit world, and a thousand chart (ten hundred charts) shows the pattern repeating.
How does regrouping depend on place value?
Direct answer: Regrouping is trading between places: in 43 − 17, you cannot take 7 ones from 3 ones, so you break one ten into ten ones and now have 13 ones. If a child understands that a ten is ten ones, that step is obvious; if they do not, "borrowing" is a magic trick they will forget or misapply, like subtracting the smaller digit from the larger regardless of order.
Watch the trade happen
Before any algorithm, do it with bundles. Build 43 (four bundles, three loose). Ask for 17 to be taken away. They will reach for 7 loose ones and find only 3. Wait. Let them discover that a bundle needs to be opened. Once they have done that physically a few times, the crossed-out digits on paper are a record of something they have actually done.
The same trade runs the other way in addition: 28 + 15 gives 13 ones, which bundle into one ten and three ones, and that ten goes to join the others. Our guide to subtraction with regrouping walks through the paper version step by step once the blocks make sense.
What games teach place value at home?
Direct answer: Any game where a child builds, trades and reads numbers with tens and ones. The best ones need only dice, a hundred chart and something to bundle. Five to ten minutes a few times a week is plenty; it is the trading, not the drilling, that builds the idea.
| Game | How it goes | What it builds |
|---|---|---|
| Race to 100 | Roll a die, add that many ones; bundle every ten; first to ten bundles wins | Making tens |
| Race to zero | Start with 100 as ten bundles; roll and take away; you must open a bundle to pay | Breaking tens (regrouping) |
| Digit cards | Draw three digit cards, make the biggest number you can; then the smallest | Position sets value |
| Hundred chart hop | Point to a square; "10 more? 10 less? 1 more?" | Mental place value |
| Mystery number | "I have 3 tens and 14 ones. What number am I?" | Non-standard groupings (44) |
| Shop with tens | Price tags on toys; pay with "ten dollar" bundles and "one dollar" straws | Trading and change |
The mystery-number game is the one to watch. A child who can tell you that 3 tens and 14 ones is 44 has place value; a child who says 314 is still reading digits.
Where an app fits: TernQuest's place value games do the digit-card and hundred-chart versions above with hints from Pip, free for one child, and they are useful for the daily reps once the idea is in place. They are not the place to start; the first week of place value should be straws and rubber bands at the table, and no screen does that part better than your hands.
Related reading
- 2nd grade math skills checklist (2026) — everything else 2nd grade expects.
- Subtraction with regrouping: how to teach it without tears — the paper algorithm once blocks make sense.
- Homework routine for elementary kids — where five minutes of straws fits in the evening.
Next step
Once the bundles make sense, TernQuest has place value and regrouping games tagged to the 2nd grade standards, free to start for one child, for the daily practice that turns the idea into fluency. Bring the straws to the table first.