Number Talk Lesson Plan Template – Printable, With a Sample

All 7 sheets

One number talk 3

Dot image number talk plan, with a box to draw the dots An open box to draw the dot image, then Ways students might see it, Questions to ask and What I will record. Date and Grade lines at the top.
Number talk lesson plan, a problem and four strategies The problem and Date lines, then six boxes: four for the strategies you expect students to use, one for Questions to ask and one for What I will record.
Number talk plans, two to a page Two short plans with a cut line between them, each with Date and Problem lines and ruled lines under Strategies I expect, Questions to ask and What I will record.

A string, a week, a record 3

Number talk plan for a string of four problems For a talk built from problems that lead into each other: rows First to Fourth with The problem, Why it comes next and Strategies I expect columns, under an Idea to bring out line.
Number talk record, strategies students shared in 10 talks Ten rows to fill after each talk: Date, The problem, Strategies students shared and To try next.
Number talk week, one problem a day Rows Monday to Friday with The problem, Strategy to bring out and What happened columns, under Week of, Grade and Idea for the week lines.

Filled-in sample 1

Sample: a number talk on 18 × 5, filled in Sample. The six boxes filled in for 18 × 5: four ways to reach 90, three questions to ask and a note on what goes on the board.

How it works

This number talk lesson plan template starts from one problem and has you solve it the ways your students might before you pose it. Every sheet prints on Letter or A4.

Read the full guide

Solve it four ways first

Write the problem at the top, then one way a student might solve it in each strategy box. Under Questions to ask, note what you will say to get a strategy explained or compared. What I will record is for how each one will look on the board.

Dots, strings and a week of talks

The dot image plan has an open box to draw the dots. The string sheet orders four problems that lead into each other, each with the reason it comes next. The week sheet holds one problem a day and what happened.

Planning several talks at once? Two short plans print on one page, with a cut line between them.
After each talk, the record sheet keeps the strategies students shared and what to try next.

Questions and answers

What goes in a number talk lesson plan?

On this template: one problem, the strategies you expect students to use, the questions you will ask and how you will record their thinking. It gives no script and no time limit; those are yours to set.

Is there a number talk lesson plan example?

Yes. The sample plans 18 × 5 with four ways to reach 90: 50 + 40, 100 − 10, 9 × 10, and half of 180. It also lists three questions to ask.

Does it work for kindergarten and first grade?

The dot image plan is our suggestion for the early grades: you draw a group of dots, then list the ways students might see them and the number sentence you will record.