Let’s visit Numberland

numberland-child-relevant-playful-early-maths

⭐ Learn how to bridge the emotional world of young children with the abstract language of maths

⭐ Learn how to start an irresistible journey full of maths and cross-curricular opportunities such as language, motor skills, soft skills.

What is Let’s visit Numberland?

Let's visit Numberland book and resources

Let’s visit Numberland is the irresistible translation of crucial basic mathematical knowledge into the emotional world of 3 to 5 year old children.

We simply play that numbers are alive and have a home – just like us!

We build and explore this home, which happens to be packed with maths, connecting to whatever we find interesting or useful…

We bring in anything children like: stories, playing, crafting, exploring …

That way, Numberland helps to build a bridge from the imaginative and emotional world of 3 to 5 year olds over to the formal, abstract language of maths. Supporting a thorough understanding of essential basic maths plus confidence and motivation. Engaging, opening and preparing for any further maths to come.

More than that, Numberland triggers communication, reasoning, helping each other and can be used to deliberately address an abundant choice of content. It is a starting point for cross curricular activities and support the transition to further, more abstract maths learning.

You can use it as a group activity or as individual work (or both), bilingualism, SEN, inclusion, therapy.
For maximum flexibility, you can choose among large and small, coloured and b/w resources.

Numberland can help you with all these hot early childhood topics:
Number sense, Subitising, Numeracy, Shapes, Tenframes, Place holder, Partitioning …
Language … Soft skills … not to forget a happy childhood full of free play!

And these are the elements of Let’s visit Numberland

The numbers Zero to Ten live here as happy neighbours and their homes display essential number sense knowledge in an organised and structured way: cardinal aspect, invariancy, ordinal aspect, subitising, partitioning, shapes.
You can use each of these elements according to your individual needs. Usually, children travel to Numberland by visiting one number after the other.

Each number is a living, lovable friend with individual features!

Numberland figures characters Let's visit Numberland by Barbara Schindelhauer and Gerhard Friedrich

We turn abstract symbols into living individuals. Because for young children, everything is alive.

Each number is unique – Four with 4 braids, Five has 5 buttons, Ten has 10 pockets …

The numbers are neighbours in Numberland, so they live next to each other in their houses and gardens.

Of course, Number Zero is part of the team.


Each number needs a house to stay – with windows and a house number on it!

Numberland figures characters Let's visit Numberland by Barbara Schindelhauer and Gerhard Friedrich

Our windows are a first way of organising quantities and indicating partitioning.

In a very clear way, the windows display the amount a number stands for and how it is always one more.

As of house of Six, the principle is 5+x windows: We introduce partitioning plus support to develop subitising skills, i.e. the ability to grasp an amount at a glance (which is easy for up to 5 objects).


Each number has a beautiful garden that we can decorate!

Numberland figures characters Let's visit Numberland Barbara Schindelhauer, Gerhard Friedrich, Mark Hansen

The gardens introduce shapes and make them meaningful to children. And it is great to explore how they relate to the specific number. Why does Number One have a circular garden? Why would Number Two live either in a semicircle or in an ellipse?!
Anything that matches the number is allowed into the garden, both in terms of quantity or because you can reason.
Example for Four’s garden: 4 pebbles, 4 blocks, 4 chestnuts – as much as a toy dog with its 4 legs. What if you counted 4 legs and 1 tail? Or 4 legs, 1 tail and 2 ears?! Where can the dog go then?!


Garden frames are great to plant and water beautiful flowers or grow vegetables.

five frames and ten frames new number representation Numberland

Five-frames and ten-frames are extremely helpful for children to develop inner images of numbers which are vital for calculating, also beyond ten. Such frames are widely used in schools for subitising, partitioning, and calculation; more important keywords are placeholder value and number system.

We play gardening – starting very simple and then more elaborate, to ensure children have a smooth ride on their (long) way from their concrete to the abstract understanding. For us, the counters start with being flowers or vegetables that we plant, water, prune, buy and sell with care. This is also a chance to speak about colours.


In our well kept gardens the little wiggly number worms thrive!

five frames and ten frames new number representation Numberland

Another beautiful representation of amounts, inviting to compare, partition, put together into new numbers.


The 1-worm and the 3-worm are allowed to visit their 4-worm friend 😉


What an inviting meadow or field! We can plant, pick, or even buy flowers for our gardens here!

ten by ten frame, new number representation Numberland

Play around with sets, number bonds, patterns, mirroring … There are abundant possibilities.

You can even bring in money by playing that flowers can be bought from this field!


Number Lane! Of course, we need to get into and out of Numberland. So it’s important we know our way!

number line, new number representation Numberland

This interpretation of a number line starts with 0 and goes up to 10 first, later up to 20. Children explore the order of numbers, predecessor and successor, little calculations as well as quantities.

There are abundant activities with and on such a Number Street. If you are using it in a group, a large version is super to actually walk on/over Number Street.


Oh no, Trickster was here and messed up Numberland!!

Numberland Trickster holistic early maths dealing with mistakes

The MOST beloved character in Numberland serves the Good-versus-Bad thinking of children. Trickster teaches that mistakes happen and are absolutely no problem. If the children want support to fix them, they can call Forgetmenot for help …


Children love stories!

Let's visit Numberland book and resources
Cover of new Numberland book My Garden is a Square, a Let's visit Numberland Picture Book by Barbara Schindelhauer and Mark Hansen

Children love stories and books – so we created My Garden is a Square.

Our rhyming children’s picture book is intended as an eye opener and conversation starter.

The children learn about the home of their number friends and are invited to detect details and relate to the real world.

The book invites the children to craft their own Numberland or Numbertown and thus turn abstract numbers into tangible, happy role play…

More about the book and resources

Of course, you can use any book or story and, of course, you can craft your own resources the way you/your children prefer. We only ask you to follow the thought through design principles.


Numbertown: Relevant maths translated into the world of children and clearly structured and organised!

Let's visit Numberland, number representations child relevant

A complete Number Town will look something like in the picture, varying in its complexity according to age group and possible cognitive load.

Each time, relevant knowledge is organised and displayed in a way that helps children to develop correct and positive inner pictures. Children can then build on this structure and any further maths can properly connect.

You can use each of the Numberland elements according to your individual needs. Let’s visit Numberland is not a strict programme you had to follow, though there are suggestions on how to go about it.

Usually, children travel to Numberland by visiting one number after the other so that Number Town will gradually grow from one number to the next, allowing time to explore and address whatever and as much as needed.

Barbara Schindelhauer, author Let's visit Numberland

As I said: A neighbourhood full of maths! And tons of opportunity for active games, general knowledge, creativity, cross-curricular activities.

And voilà: The bridge from the emotional world of young children over to the abstract language of maths is becoming joyful and solid! Because we put things into a context!

Want to get started with Numberland? Learn more?

-> Download your free trial pack: Number One cutout, wall poster, numeral writing practice + colour sheet.


Follow this link to read about Numberland in various languages
kindly translated by Numberland enthusiasts around the world.