Rooted Number Sense Full Unit

Numbers have roots. Once your crew sees them, math starts making sense.

Math in the Wild is where numbers stop being things to memorize and start being things your kids actually understand: how they're built, how they break apart, and what happens when they go somewhere new (like, say, below zero).

In this first unit, we dig deep into what numbers are, specifically how they're built, how they break down, and how they fit together. The Rooted level covers three core lessons: Prime and Composite Numbers, Factors, and Negative Numbers.

Each lesson has five pieces: guided notes with a corresponding video lesson, a hands-on discovery activity, two worksheets, and a knowledge check, plus a smattering of bonus activities sprinkled throughout, including a mini history connection and a life-size number line.

When you buy a unit, you also get the Activity Cards for free! These hands-on activities cover all five levels, so if your kid needs a review, drop down a level or two; if they need a challenge, you've got plenty available in the higher levels. They're a great way to connect the concepts and solidify the idea that numbers have meaning.

Is Rooted Right for Your Kiddo?

I believe in following skill level, not grade level. Not sure which level to buy? Check out the Math Map for a free diagnostic to see which one's the best fit. It’s in the Wonder Vault!

What's Inside: Number Sense Unit 1

Three core lessons, each with five full pieces and a few bonuses thrown in.

Lesson 1: Prime & Composite

Every number tells a story about how it's built. In this lesson, your kids discover which numbers are the "building blocks" (prime) and which are made from smaller pieces (composite), and why that distinction actually matters, not just for a test, but for everything from simplifying fractions to cracking codes. Plus, they'll find a mini history lesson about Eratosthenes and his Sieve of Prime Numbers.

Lesson 2: Factors

Building on Lesson 1, kids learn to find every factor of a number, the full set of numbers that divide in evenly. This is the skill that makes fractions, ratios, and problem-solving click later on, and we teach it as its own focused topic instead of rushing it alongside multiples.

Lesson 3: Negative Numbers

Numbers don't stop at zero. Kids explore what it means for a number to go negative using real, tangible contexts like temperature and elevation, and walk away comfortable with a concept that trips up a lot of older kids who only ever meet it on a worksheet.

We don't do "read a page, answer some questions." Every Rooted lesson is five real pieces:

Guided Notes + Video + Answer Key — Maria Montessori said "what the hand writes, the brain remembers," so this isn't just reading through problems and trying to figure them out, it's a math notebook your kids build for themselves, with engaging practice problems that take them step by step through the concept. Watch a short 10–15 minute video walking through the guided notes, or, if you're comfortable teaching as a family, use the notes yourself and skip the video.

Hands-On Discovery Activity — a tactile, exploratory activity where kids find the concept themselves and dig into real conceptual understanding.

Straightforward Practice Worksheet — solid repetition to build fluency, no fluff; for kids who don't like to beat around the bush and just want to get right to it.

Fun Worksheet — the same skill, wrapped in something kids actually want to finish; this one's for the kids who need a little extra to make it to the finish line.

Knowledge Check — a quick, low-pressure check-in so you know where your crew stands, without the test-day stress.

Included Free: Number Sense Activity Cards

Every Rooted Number Sense purchase comes with a full set of Activity Cards — ready to go, no waiting. Print them, cut them, and you've got an easy grab-and-go way to keep the concepts alive between lessons, on a slow afternoon, or whenever your crew wants more hands-on practice without you having to plan a thing.

A Note on How to Use This

Five pieces doesn't mean five requirements. You know your kid better than any worksheet ever will, so if the straightforward worksheet is the win today, skip the fun one. If they need the silly version to get through it without a fight, skip the straightforward one. Use the pieces that work for your crew, in whatever order gets you there. That's not cutting corners. That's just good teaching.

Why Families Love Rooted

One topic, every kid, at their own level. If you've got a Sprouting-level kid and a Rooted-level kid, they're working on Number Sense at the same time, just at the depth each of them is ready for. No more running two completely separate math classes under one roof.

Built by a teacher who's also lived it. Every lesson comes from someone who's both stood in front of a classroom and sat at a kitchen table trying to keep five kids' attention long enough to teach fractions. Math in the Wild is what happens when both of those experiences design the same lesson.

What You Get

• 3 core lessons (Prime & Composite, Factors, Negative Numbers)

• 5 pieces per lesson: guided notes + video, hands-on discovery activity, straightforward worksheet, fun worksheet, knowledge check

• Number Sense Activity Cards, included free

• Answer keys included

• Instant digital access

• A 10% off coupon for Unit 2 (Operations) when it releases — our way of saying thanks for being here from the start