Primary 1 Maths | Position and Direction Guide | Body as Reference, Then Grid Squares

2026-11-09

Tutor lesson-prep guides · Primary Maths

When a child says on the left, they mean on their own left. The real difficulty in position questions is never the direction; it is that nobody said who the reference is.

Objectives — Students can: (1) identify their own left and right and confirm it with hand actions; (2) describe where objects are in the classroom using front, back, left, right, above and below; (3) describe a route on a grid as so many squares forward and so many to the right, and count the net movement.

01 Prerequisites (3-minute check)

If any of these fails, fix it before the lesson starts.

Skill	Quick check	Pass mark
Numbers to 10	Count from 1 to 10	Counts in order
Body parts	Point to your left hand and right ear	Points correctly
Grids	Walk along floor tiles one at a time	Steps one tile at a time

02 Lesson flow (60 minutes)

Time	Stage	Tutor does	Student does
0-6 min	Left and right warm-up	Left hand up, touch the right ear, follow commands	Five correct
6-16 min	Body as reference	Who is on your left facing the board, and after turning round	Explain the change
16-28 min	Three directions	Above, below, front, back using a shelf and a desk	Give three sentences
28-42 min	Grid	From the start, 4 squares forward then 2 back	Walk the route
42-52 min	Seating plan	3 rows by 3 columns, 9 seats, find two given seats	Point to two seats
52-60 min	Exit check	Three questions collected and marked	Work independently

03 Teaching script (read it out)

Scene 1: Left and right start from your own body

There is only one dependable starting point for left and right at Primary 1: your own body. The hand you write with is the right hand and the other is the left. Every answer about left and right needs one extra question first: according to whom?
Why? Facing the board and facing away, the same classmate moves from one side to the other. An answer with no reference can always be overturned, and the child concludes that this topic is guesswork. So the rule is to state the reference every time: by my reckoning, the pencil is on the left.

Students do: face the board and then face away, say where a classmate is each time, and explain why the answer changed.

Scene 2: Front, back, above and below never substitute for each other

Front and back are about queue order and movement, above and below are about height, left and right are about two sides. They cannot be swapped: a book on a shelf is above the desk, not in front of it.
Children under eight often say in front because they are standing in front of the shelf. The fix is a fixed sentence frame: this object is above, below, in front of or behind that object. A position needs two objects; with one object it cannot be stated at all.

Students say: three position sentences, each naming both objects.

Scene 3: Grid moves are counted, and direction must be spoken

On a grid, position is given in squares. From the start, 4 squares forward then 2 back leaves a net movement of 2 squares forward, because the two directions cancel and the child should count that out. A seating plan of 3 rows by 3 columns holds 9 seats, and finding a seat needs both numbers, the row and the column.
Forward alone is never enough; the change of direction must be said. Walking the wrong way lands you in the wrong place however many squares you count, so after every route ask: how many squares from the start now, and in which direction?

Students do: on squared paper go 4 forward then 2 back, write the net 2 squares, and name the direction.

04 Question types and worked steps

Type	Example	Steps	Answer
Left and right	Which side is the pencil on	Confirm which way you face first	The answer must name the reference
Position sentence	Where is the book relative to the desk	Use above, below, in front, behind	Both objects named
Grid route	4 forward then 2 back	Count square by square, state direction	Net movement is 2
Seating plan	A seat in row and column	Row first, then column	Both numbers required

Sanity check (teach this): Sanity check: facing the opposite way reverses left and right; above is not in front; 4 forward then 2 back is a net 2, not 4 plus 2; 3 rows by 3 columns give 9 seats; every position answer carries either a reference or two named objects.

05 Independent practice (3 questions)

Question	Answer	What to watch
Left and right	Five command responses	No confusion
Sentence frame	Three full position sentences	Both objects named
Grid	Walk once and write the net count	Direction stated
Seating	Find two given seats	Row and column both used

06 Common mistakes and what to say

Mistake	Student writes	Say this
Mixing up left and right	Raising the wrong hand	Which hand do you write with? Raise it. That one is the right hand.
No reference given	It is on the left	According to whom? Which way are you facing? State the reference before the answer.
Above confused with in front	The book is in front of the desk	Is the book higher than the desk, or closer to you than the edge? Are those the same?
Adding instead of cancelling	4 forward then 2 back answered as 4 plus 2	Going back is going back. Count the squares between the start and where you stand now.

07 Homework (paper, section and question numbers)

Primary maths chapter index — All chapters by level
Teaching guide index — Same structure, other subjects
Redo this chapter — Questions 1 to 4 again, writing the reference before each answer

08 Exit check (last 5 minutes)

Question	Answer	Decision
Which hand do you write with	The right hand, by your own reckoning	Wrong means act one again
Where is the book relative to the desk	Above the desk	In front means act two again
4 forward then 2 back	A net 2 forward	4 plus 2 means act three again

09 Tutor FAQ

Why is left and right so hard?

Because it is relative and flips with the direction you face, while above and below stay stable in a room. Relative ideas need more physical practice.

Should a mirror be used?

Only after body actions are secure. A mirror confuses most six-year-olds before their own left and right are stable.

How big should the grid be?

Three by three is enough at Primary 1. A large grid keeps them busy counting and they stop stating direction.

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A TutorZone lesson-prep guide. Written by the TutorZone team; questions and lesson flow are original and are not taken from any school or publisher material.