P2 Maths | Three and Four Digit Numbers Lesson Guide for Tutors

P2 Maths | Three and Four Digit Numbers Lesson Guide for Tutors | Place Value and Comparing

2026-11-08

Tutor lesson-prep guides · Primary Maths

Pupils can read 347 aloud but cannot say what the 4 is worth. This lesson turns place value into a rule they can say, break apart and check.

Objectives — Pupils can: 1) say what each digit in a three digit number is worth in the hundreds, tens and ones column; 2) read and write whole numbers from 100 to 9999; 3) compare two numbers by counting digits first and then the highest place; 4) arrange three digits into the largest and the smallest three digit number.

01 Prerequisites (3-minute check)

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

Skill	Quick check	Pass mark
Numbers to 100	read 98, write seventy six	the starting point for place value
Addition and subtraction within 20	45 + 8, 52 – 7	the base for carrying and borrowing

02 Lesson flow (40 minutes)

Time	Stage	Tutor does	Student does
0-6 min	Place value table	the 4 in the tens column is worth what	40, not 4
6-16 min	Reading and writing	read 347, write five hundred and six	347 and 506
16-26 min	Comparing	which is larger, 507 or 570	570, compare the tens
26-36 min	Arranging digits	make the smallest number from 5, 0, 8	508, zero cannot lead
36-40 min	Exit check	three questions	all correct to pass

03 Teaching script (read it out)

Scene 1: Act 1: The column decides the value

Draw three boxes and label them hundreds, tens and ones from left to right. Place the digits 3, 4 and 7 into the boxes and ask what the 3 on the left is worth. Most pupils say three. Take the 3 out, hold it in the hundreds box and write 300 beside it, then ask again. Do the same for the 4 (40) and the 7 (7). The pupil must say the full sentence: 3 hundreds, 4 tens and 7 ones. Once that sentence is fluent, comparing and carrying both get easier.

Tutor line: the same digit is worth different amounts in different boxes. In the tens box the 4 is worth 40.

Scene 2: Act 2: Count digits first, then compare the highest place

Put 507 and 570 side by side. Count digits: both have three, so start at the highest place. Hundreds are both 5, so that is a tie; go to the tens, 0 against 7, and 7 wins, so 570 is larger. Then compare 999 with 1000. The digit counts differ, and four digits always beat three, so no place by place comparison is needed. The pupil should state the rule themselves and show it with hands: four fingers up means four digits wins.

Tutor line: different digit counts, more digits wins, no comparing needed. Same digit count, start at the left and stop at the first place that differs.

Scene 3: Act 3: Arranging three digits into the largest and the smallest

Give the digit cards 5, 0 and 8. For the largest, put the biggest digit on the left: 8 hundreds, 5 tens, 0 ones, which is 850. For the smallest, the obvious move is to put 0 first, but then the number is 058, which is just 58 and has lost a place. So the smallest is 5 hundreds, 0 tens, 8 ones, which is 508. This is the step pupils get wrong most often, so every answer is followed by writing zero cannot lead and counting the digits again.

Tutor line: when you build the smallest number, the 0 cannot go on the left. Put it on the left and you have lost a place.

04 Question types and worked steps

Type	Example	Steps
Naming place value	write the table, say each digit as so many hundreds, tens and ones, check the total	the digit name alone is not an answer
Reading and writing	hundreds first, then tens, then ones; read a zero in the middle as zero	306 is three hundred and six, never three hundred six
Comparing	count digits, then compare from the highest place, decision at the first difference	never start from the right
Arranging digits	sort the digits, largest to smallest for the biggest number, smallest non zero digit first for the smallest	count the digits after arranging

Sanity check (teach this): Three digit numbers run from 100 to 999, which is 900 numbers, and four digit numbers from 1000 to 9999, which is 9000; the number with more digits is always larger; when building the smallest number the 0 cannot lead because a place is lost; 730 contains 73 tens, not 7 tens.

05 Independent practice (3 questions)

Question	Answer	What to watch
What is the 4 in 347 worth?	40, that is 4 tens	the 4 sits in the tens column
Which is larger, 507 or 570?	570	hundreds tie, tens are 0 against 7
Make the largest three digit number from 5, 0 and 8.	850	left to right 8, 5, 0
Make the smallest three digit number from 5, 0 and 8.	508	zero cannot lead
What are the next three numbers after 298?	299, 300, 301	adding 1 to 299 carries

06 Common mistakes and what to say

Mistake	Student writes	Say this
Skipping the zero when reading 306	saying three hundred six	the zero in the middle is read out: three hundred and six.
Thinking 730 has 7 tens	reading the hundreds digit as tens	730 is 73 tens. Divide 730 by 10 and see.
Putting 0 first to build the smallest number	writing 058 and calling it 58	0 on the left loses a place, so the next smallest digit leads.
Comparing from the right	seeing a 7 against a 0 and calling 507 larger	start from the left. The first place that differs decides it.

07 Homework (paper, section and question numbers)

Practice set for this chapter (questions 1 to 5 above) — questions 1 to 3 on place value and comparing; questions 4 to 5 on arranging and counting on
Primary Maths chapter index (related chapters) — question 6: use 3, 6 and 9 to write all six three digit numbers from smallest to largest

08 Exit check (last 5 minutes)

Question	Answer	Decision
What is the 5 in 506 worth?	500, that is 5 hundreds	wrong: redraw the place value table
Which is larger, 999 or 1000?	1000, four digits always beat three	wrong: reteach counting digits first
Can 0 lead when you build the smallest three digit number?	no, a place is lost	wrong: rebuild and count the digits

09 Tutor FAQ

Should P2 add and subtract four digit numbers?

No. P2 covers reading, writing, place value and comparing. Four digit calculation belongs to P3; here only the 1000 boundary is introduced.

Pupils keep skipping zeros when reading. What helps?

Have them point at each column before reading and say zero out loud whenever they touch a zero. Then write the number underneath and compare.

Are place value counters worth using?

Yes. Ten singles bundle into one ten, ten tens into one hundred. Pupils who have broken 730 apart once know it holds 73 tens; a spoken rule alone does not stick.

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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.