Adult Numeracy

corecurriculum
Adult Numeracy
corecurriculum
Adult Numeracy
ii
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
Acknowledgements
The Basi c Ski l l s Agency woul d l i ke t o t hank t he f ol l owi ng f or t hei r cont ri but i on t o t he
devel opment of t he Core Curri cul um:
Mart i n Good, Cambri dge Trai ni ng and Devel opment Lt d.
Freda Hol l i n, Cambri dge Trai ni ng and Devel opment Lt d.
Angel a Si mpson, Educat i on Consul t ant
Andrew St eeds, Consul t ant and Edi t or
Li nda Horne, Consul t ant
Lynn Trant er, Cambri dge Uni versi t y School of Educat i on
Karen Davi es, Busi ness and Educat i on Consul t ancy
Madel ei ne Hel d, London Language and Li t eracy Uni t
Sarah Ol i ver, Consul t ant
Noyona Chanda, London Language and Li t eracy Uni t
Suzanne Overt on-Edwards, The Col l ege of Nort h East London
and f rom t he Basi c Ski l l s Agency:
Ji m Pat eman
Gay Lobl ey
Sarah Bl ackmore.
The Basi c Ski l l s Agency woul d al so l i ke t o t hank t hose organi sat i ons and i ndi vi dual s
who responded t o t he consul t at i on on t he draf t curri cul um and, i n part i cul ar, t he Furt her
Educat i on Devel opment Agency (FEDA) and t he Qual i f i cat i ons and Curri cul um Aut hori t y
(QCA) f or t hei r det ai l ed responses.
The Basi c Ski l l s Agency 2001
Produced by Cambri dge Trai ni ng and Devel opment Lt d. on behal f of t he Basi c Ski l l s Agency,
Commonweal t h House, 119 New Oxf ord St reet , London WC1A 1NU.
Desi gn: St udi o 21
Edi t or: Andrew St eeds
Reproduction, storage, adaptation or translation, in any form or by any means, of this publication is prohibited without
prior written permission of the publisher, unless within the terms of licences issued by the Copyright Licensing
Agency. Excerpts may be reproduced for the purpose of research, private study, criticism or review, or by educational
institutions solely for educational purposes, without permission, provided full acknowledgement is given.
ISBN 1-85990-128-X
Contents
iii
Contents
Foreword by Mal col m Wi cks MP, Mi ni st er f or Li f el ong Learni ng v
Introduction
The core curri cul um 1
The nat i onal st andards f or adul t l i t eracy and numeracy 3
The nat i onal qual i f i cat i ons f ramework 4
Who are t he l earners? 5
Usi ng t he core curri cul um 6
The Numeracy Core Curriculum
The progressi on bet ween capabi l i t i es 12
Number: t he progressi on bet ween curri cul um el ement s 14
Measures, shape and space: t he progressi on bet ween curri cul um el ement s 16
Handl i ng dat a: t he progressi on bet ween curri cul um el ement s 18
Number 20
Measures, shape and space 48
Handl i ng dat a 74
Glossary 88
References 93
Foreword
v
Foreword
Improvi ng t he nat i ons l i t eracy and numeracy ski l l s i s one of
t he Government s t op pri ori t i es. We have al ready brought
about si gni f i cant i mprovement s at school l evel and want t o
ensure t hat adul t s have good opport uni t i es t o devel op t hei r
ski l l s t oo. We are i n t he process of i nt roduci ng a range of
new measures t o hel p t hem.
One of our f i rst t asks i s t o i mprove t he qual i t y and
consi st ency of provi si on. Thi s new adul t l i t eracy and
numeracy curri cul um, based on t he nat i onal st andards
devel oped by t he Qual i f i cat i ons and Curri cul um Aut hori t y, wi l l be cent ral t o achi evi ng
t hat goal .
It provi des t eachers wi t h a comprehensi ve f ramework t o hel p i dent i f y and meet each
persons i ndi vi dual l earni ng needs, i ncl udi ng exampl es of t eachi ng st rat egi es t hey can
use. For l earners, i t wi l l ensure t hat , no mat t er whi ch t ype of course t hey choose or
where t he l earni ng t akes pl ace, t hey can be conf i dent of a common approach and
ef f ect i ve support .
I am sure t hat t hi s curri cul um wi l l prove an i nval uabl e t ool . It i s desi gned pri mari l y f or
adul t l i t eracy and numeracy t eachers and t ut ors, but i t wi l l al so be hi ghl y usef ul t o
programme managers, devel opers of l i t eracy and numeracy t rai ni ng and mat eri al s, and t o
t he growi ng body of organi sat i ons and i ndi vi dual s i nvol ved i n addressi ng adul t l i t eracy
and numeracy i ssues.
Mal col m Wi cks MP,
Mi ni st er f or Li f el ong Learni ng
The Adult Basic Skills
Numeracy Core Curriculum
Introduction
1
Introduction
A nat ional st rat egy t o t ackle t he lit eracy and numeracy needs of adult s was launched by
t he government in t he Aut umn of 2000. Following t he report of Sir Claus Mosers Working
Group, A Fresh St art Improving Lit eracy and Numeracy (Df EE, 1999), t he government
commit t ed it self , t he educat ion services and a cross-sect ion of agencies and nat ional
bodies t o a major reduct ion in t he number of adult s who st ruggle wit h basic reading,
writ ing, spelling and mat hs.
The st rat egy i ncl udes nat i onal st andards of adul t l i t eracy and numeracy t o ensure
consi st ency, a core curri cul um t o cl ari f y what t eachers shoul d t each t o enabl e
l earners t o reach t hose st andards, a new syst em of qual i f i cat i ons t o measure
achi evement agai nst t he st andards, and i mproved qual i t y and di versi t y of l earni ng
opport uni t i es t o meet t he needs of a wi de range of l earners. Thi s st rat egy set s a
chal l enge t o us al l .
The adult literacy and numeracy core curriculum
The new adul t l i t eracy and numeracy core curri cul um i s cent ral t o t he nat i onal st rat egy.
It set s out t he ent i t l ement t o l earni ng f or al l adul t s who have di f f i cul t i es wi t h l i t eracy
and numeracy. It descri bes t he cont ent of what shoul d be t aught i n l i t eracy and
numeracy programmes i n: f urt her and adul t educat i on; t he workpl ace and programmes
f or t he unempl oyed; pri sons; communi t y-based and f ami l y l i t eracy and numeracy
programmes. It assi st s t eachers t o meet t he i ndi vi dual needs of adul t s t hrough t he
sel ect i on and t eachi ng of ski l l s appropri at e t o t hose adul t s needs. For t he f i rst t i me,
adul t s and t he t eachers who work wi t h t hem have a cl ear set of ski l l s requi red t o meet
nat i onal st andards, t oget her wi t h t he knowl edge and underst andi ng t hat underpi n t hose
ski l l s, support ed by sampl e st rat egi es t o devel op t hem.
The core curriculum has been writ t en primarily f or use by adult lit eracy and numeracy
t eachers and t ut ors. However, it will be an import ant document f or programme managers
and developers, f or t hose involved in research and f or a wider group of t hose bodies and
individuals t hat are increasingly concerned wit h t he adult lit eracy and numeracy agenda.
The core curriculum is based on t he nat ional st andards f or adult lit eracy and numeracy
developed by t he Qualif icat ions and Curriculum Aut horit y (QCA) in 2000. It s publicat ion
f ollows nat ional consult at ion wit h t eachers and managers of adult lit eracy and numeracy
programmes, and relevant nat ional bodies. The core curriculum draws heavily on exist ing
and planned curricula and st rat egies in t his count ry and overseas, specif ically:
the twin frameworks for teaching literacy and numeracy that are elaborated in
the National Literacy Strategy and the National Numeracy Strategy;
the new key skills units of communication and application of number

developed by QCA;
the revised National Curriculum for English and mathematics introduced in

schools in September 2000;
One of the crucial
elements of the
proposed strategy must
be clarity about the
skills, knowledge and
understanding that
anyone needs to be
literate and numerate in
the modern world.
These skills need to be
enshrined in a new
curriculum, with well-
developed and
understood standards.
Chapter 10 (A New Basic
Skills Curriculum and a
New System of
Qualifications), A Fresh
Start, February 1999
2
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
adult literacy and numeracy curricula and initiatives that have been developed
in other countries (and, in particular, in the United States of America, Australia,
Canada and France).
As the national strategy unfolds, the core curriculum will be reviewed and updated to build
in new and revised ways of delivering these skills in order to fulfil the vision outlined in A
Fresh Start. For teachers, therefore, the new core curriculum is both a key support and also
a challenge.
Adult lit eracy and numeracy t eachers will be able t o use t he core curriculum t o develop
learning programmes. It will help t hem t o:
use information from diagnostic assessment to identify learners skills, both

those that they already have and those that they need;
draw those elements from the curriculum into the learning plan and
assessment regime;
use their knowledge of the learners context and priorities to find relevant
applications where learners can practise the skills and knowledge they are
acquiring;
follow the progression through the standards and the curriculum elements
to build a formative and summative assessment regime into the learning plan.
Inclusivity and access
The adult lit eracy and numeracy core curriculum shares t he basic principles of inclusivit y
and access t hat are laid down in t he Nat ional Curriculum f or schools:
Education is . . . a route to equality of opportunity for all, a healthy and just
democracy, a productive economy, and sustainable development. Education
should reflect the enduring values that contribute to these ends. These include
valuing ourselves, our families and other relationships, the wider groups to which
we belong, the diversity in our society and the environment in which we live.
. . . (Education) must enable us to respond positively to the opportunities and
challenges of the rapidly changing world in which we live and work. In particular,
we need to be prepared to engage as individuals, parents, workers and citizens
with economic, social and cultural change, including the continued globalisation
of the economy and society, with new work and leisure patterns and with the
rapid expansion of communication technologies.
The . . . Curriculum secures . . . for all, irrespective of social background, culture,
race, gender, differences in ability and disabilities, an entitlement to a number of
areas of learning and to develop knowledge, understanding, skills and attitudes
necessary for their self-fulfilment and development as active and responsible
citizens.
(The school curriculum and the National Curriculum: values, aims and purposes,
The National Curriculum, DfEE, 1999)
As far as possible the
curriculum should be
context free the core
should set out the skills
to be taught. The
context in which they
are taught is a matter
for the teacher and
learner to decide,
particularly as different
adults have different
motivations
A Fresh Start,
February 1999
Introduction
3
Some adults will have special requirements. The following access statement
applies to the standards at each level:
Adults with a disability may have special learning requirements and be unable
to demonstrate some of the capabilities or skills specified in the standards.
As a reasonable adjustment and to aid access, it is recommended that
alternative methods are investigated to allow individual to demonstrate their
abilities.
Curriculum developers and qualification designers are expected to produce
guidance for centres on recognising special learning requirements. This
guidance should be supported by a framework for identifying and adopting
appropriate alternative approaches.
(Access to the Standards, National standards for adult literacy and numeracy,
QCA, 2000)
Guidance on specialist diagnosis of learning needs and access t o t he curriculum f or
learners wit h physical disabilit ies, sensory impairment and learning disabilit ies will be
published separat ely.
The national standards for adult literacy and numeracy
The st andards describe adult lit eracy and numeracy wit hin t he def init ion expressed in
A Fresh St art :
the ability to read, write and speak in English and to use mathematics at a
level necessary to function at work and in society in general.
The st andards provide a map of t he range of skills and capabilit ies t hat adult s are
expect ed t o need in order t o f unct ion and progress at work and in societ y. A separat e set
of st andards has been produced f or each of t he basic skills of lit eracy and numeracy.
Literacycovers t he abilit y t o:
speak, listen and respond
read and comprehend
write to communicate.
Numeracycovers t he abilit y t o:
understand and use mathematical information
calculate and manipulate mathematical information
interpret results and communicate mathematical information.

Separat e curricula have been developed and published f or lit eracy and f or numeracy.
4
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
Table 1. The national qualifications
framework
Key skills
Level 5
National
qualifications
framework
Level 5
Key skills
Level 4
National
qualifications
framework
Level 4
Key skills
Level 3
National
qualifications
framework
Level 3
Key skills
Level 2
Literacy/Numeracy
Level 2
Literacy/Numeracy
Level 1
National
Curriculum
Level 5
National
Curriculum
Level 4
Literacy/Numeracy
Entry 3
Literacy/Numeracy
Entry 2
National
Curriculum
Level 3
National
Curriculum
Level 2
Literacy/Numeracy
Entry 1
National
Curriculum
Level 1
National
qualifications
framework
Level 2
Key skills
Level 1
National
qualifications
framework
Level 1
Entry Level
The national qualifications framework
The nat ional st andards f or adult lit eracy and numeracy are specif ied at t hree levels: Ent ry
level, Level 1 and Level 2. Levels 1 and 2 are aligned t o t he key skills of communicat ion
and applicat ion of number (t his alignment is signpost ed on t he lef t -hand page of t he
curriculum document at t hese levels). Ent ry level is f urt her divided int o t hree sub-levels:
Ent ry 1, Ent ry 2 and Ent ry 3. Ent ry level has been set out in t his way t o describe in det ail
t he small st eps required f or adult s t o make progress. This sub-division also signals a clear
alignment of t he skill levels wit h levels 1, 2 and 3 of t he Nat ional Curriculum.
The t hree levels of t he nat ional st andards f or adult lit eracy and numeracy correspond t o
t he levels of demand of qualif icat ions in t he nat ional qualif icat ions f ramework, illust rat ed
in Table 1.
Introduction
5
Who are the learners?
Over 7 million adult s in England have dif f icult ies wit h lit eracy and numeracy. This means
t hat t hey are unable t o read and writ e very well and have dif f icult y doing some of t he
simplest t asks such as writ ing a let t er, reading a piece of t ext or calculat ing change t asks
t hat most of us t ake f or grant ed.
But we know t hat t he 7 mi l l i on adul t s st ruggl i ng wi t h l i t eracy and numeracy are not a
homogeneous group. They re 7 mi l l i on i ndi vi dual s wi t h di f f erent needs, at t i t udes and
i nt erest s. We al so know t hat t hey dont al l have t he same degree of di f f i cul t i es wi t h
lit eracy and numeracy.
Research by t he Basi c Ski l l s Agency has i dent i f i ed t hree at t ai nment groups t hat make up
t he 7 mi l l i on:
a higher-level group (just over 4 million adults) who need fairly modest help to
brush up their skills to the required level;
a middle-level group (just under 1.5 million adults) who have greater difficulty
and need more specific and in-depth help;
a lower-level group (just under 1.5 million adults) who require intensive
teaching by specialist teachers.
In addition, there are an estimated 500,000 adults for whom English is an additional
language. A separate but related curriculum has been developed for this group of learners.
Many of those with low levels of literacy and numeracy are working. For example, recent
research showed that, among the 7 million adults with very low or low literacy, the following
proportions were employed:
57 per cent of men in their twenties
72 per cent of men in their thirties
74 per cent of women in their forties.

1
However, we know that low levels of literacy and numeracy limit the employment
opportunities available to individuals. A 1993 survey found that:
people without any Entry level skills had access to only one in 50 of lower level jobs;
those with Entry level skills had access to 50 per cent;
those with Level 1 skills had access to 75 per cent.

2
As jobs continue to change, and new technological, quality and work organisation systems
are introduced, this situation is likely to get worse.
1. Literacy, Leaving School and Jobs: the effect of poor basic skills on employment in different age groups,
The Basic Skills Agency, 1999
2. Basic Skills and Jobs, Institute for Employment Studies, 1993
6
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
Using the adult numeracy core curriculum
The new adult numeracy core curriculum is organised across double pages as follows:
National standard for adult numeracy
Each of the standards for adult numeracy is listed in the adult numeracy core curriculum. A
summary page showing progression between capabilities at each level is included on pages
1213.
Curriculum element
The adult numeracy core curriculum is broken down into the skills and knowledge of number,
measures, shape and space, and handling data required to meet the standards. The curriculum
elements are made up of descriptors(the term given to skills listed underneath each standard at
each level in the national standards for adult literacy and numeracy published by QCA) from the
standards, as well as additional skills and knowledgenecessary for the achievement of the
standards. Descriptors are shown in bold; additional skills and knowledge are in a lighter typeface.
(At Levels 1 and 2, the curriculums alignment to the key skills of application of number is given
on the left-hand page.)
Example
An exampl e of a rel evant numeracy t ask i s at t ached t o each of t he curri cul um el ement s.
The exampl es are not i nt ended t o def i ne or prescri be t asks, but t o make t he demands of
t he l evel cl ear.
Sample activities
The right-hand pages list sample activities that can be used to develop and practise the skills
and knowledge related to each curriculum element.
Guidance
The right-hand pages also contain guidance on techniques and approaches that teachers will
use to develop numeracy.
Curriculum
sub-section
Example
Curriculum
reference
Sample
activities
Guidance Standards
Curriculum
element
number
Introduction
7
Curriculum referencing
To assist teachers in their planning, the adult numeracy core curriculum uses a reference
system (indicated on the sample double page on the previous page) that breaks the core
curriculum into its component parts of: curriculum section, curriculum sub-section, level and
curriculum element. Pages 1419 use this reference system to provide a detailed account of
the progression between curriculum elements across the levels.
Key to reference system
Curriculum sections and sub-sections
Glossary
In addit ion, t he adult numeracy core curriculum cont ains a glossary of t he t erms used. It
includes mat hemat ical t erms, and qualif ying t erms such as st raight f orward and everyday.
Number, Measures, Shape and Space, Handling Data
The adul t numeracy core curri cul um f ol l ows a model based on t he Nat i onal Curri cul um
f or mat hemat i cs:
numberincludes numbers and the number system, and calculations
measures, shape and spaceincludes common measures of money, time,

temperature, distance, length, weight, capacity, perimeter, area and volume,
and shape and position
handling dataincludes data and statistical measures, and probability.

Learners need t o devel op ski l l s, knowl edge and underst andi ng i n each of t hese areas of
mat hemat i cs. An underst andi ng of numbers and t he rel at i onshi ps bet ween t hem, and an
abi l i t y t o mani pul at e numbers ef f i ci ent l y and conf i dent l y, i s cri t i cal f or success i n ot her
areas of t he curri cul um. For exampl e, a l earner mi ght be abl e t o underst and t he
concept of area and how i t i s cal cul at ed, but success i n sol vi ng area probl ems al so
requi res t he abi l i t y t o mul t i pl y numbers ef f i ci ent l y; si mi l arl y, t he abi l i t y t o sol ve probl ems
wi t h money and met ri c measures requi res t he abi l i t y t o mani pul at e deci mal numbers.
However, t hi s does not mean t hat ski l l s must be t aught sequent i al l y. Learners' previ ous
knowl edge and experi ence can be drawn upon t o devel op new ski l l s and underst andi ng;
f or exampl e, f ami l i ari t y wi t h money wri t t en i n deci mal not at i on can f orm t he basi s f or
underst andi ng deci mal numbers, whi ch can t hen be appl i ed i n ot her areas of t he
curri cul um.
In f ollowing t he adult numeracy core curriculum, it is crit ical t hat t eachers ident if y
opport unit ies f or making connect ions bet ween dif f erent areas of t he core curriculum, bot h
in t erms of linked skills and mat hemat ical concept s. Teaching a single skill in isolat ion, f or
Number N
Whole numbers N1
Fractions, decimals
and percentages N2
Measures, shapes and
space MSS
Common measures MSS1
Shape and Space MSS2
Handling data HD
Data HD1
Probability HD2
8
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
example t eaching a single st rat egy t o f ind 10% of an amount of money, may meet a
learners immediat e needs. But t eachers could t hen make connect ions in t his case t o
division and place value, t o f ract ions and decimals so t hat t he learner can develop t he
mat hemat ical underst anding t hat leads t o independent learning and t he development of
t ransf erable skills.
Problem solving
The applicat ion of skills t o solving problems in a range of cont ext s will enable learners t o
demonst rat e capabilit ies def ined in t he nat ional st andards f or adult numeracy. Problem-
solving skills cannot be t aught , learned or pract ised in isolat ion; t hey are an int egral part
of t he adult numeracy core curriculum. Teachers need t o provide learners wit h oppor-
t unit ies t o develop skills in solving problems involving number, measures, shape and dat a.
Discussion is an import ant part of developing problem-solving skills. It helps learners t o
underst and dif f erent approaches t o solving problems, t o ident if y what inf ormat ion is
needed, t o make decisions about which operat ions and st rat egies t o use, and t o
underst and how t o organise and check result s. Explanat ion is equally import ant : asking
learners t o explain t heir approaches, met hods and answers promot es act ive learning
t hrough providing opport unit ies f or learners t o use mat hemat ical vocabulary, ident if y
dif f icult ies and conf irm t heir underst anding. It can also help t he t eacher t o ident if y
misconcept ions t hat might not be revealed t hrough writ t en work.
The learners context
If t he adult numeracy core curriculum is t o be successf ul, it is import ant t hat :
the learner is clear about what they are learning and what the activities they
are undertaking are designed to teach a clear and consistently delivered
curriculum helps with this;
the learner brings the context that will be the ultimate proving ground for
their improved skills;
the learner is sure that the skills and knowledge that they are learning are
helping them to use their numeracy in the range of ways they want.
The curriculum element s must be clear and used wit h learners. The aim must be t hat
learners develop t he concept s and t he language t hat will help t hem make sense of t heir
learning and go on doing it . Evidence shows t hat t he inclusion of explicit curriculum
t arget s in learning programmes has result ed in a clearer ident if icat ion of out comes by
learners as well as by t eachers, and in bet t er at t endance and progression by learners.
The skills and knowledge element s in t he adult numeracy core curriculum are generic.
They are t he basic building blocks t hat everyone needs in order t o use numeracy skills
ef f ect ively in everyday lif e. What is dif f erent is how adult s use t hese skills and t he widely
dif f ering past experiences t hat t hey bring t o t heir learning. This is t he cont ext t hat t he
learner provides. Each individual learner will come wit h t heir own set of priorit ies and
requirement s, and t hese must be t he st art ing point of t heir learning programme
development .
Learners should be able
to develop the skills
common to them all,
using the interests, the
materials and the
activities that most
closely match their
needs
A Fresh Start
In short, the
curriculum is not a
series of rigid lesson
plans to be taught by
every teacher and
followed by every
learner.
A Fresh Start
The sect ion in t he nat ional st andards on t he St ruct ure of t he st andards provides
examples of t he use of adult lit eracy and numeracy in dif f erent cont ext s under t he
f ollowing headings:
citizen and community
economic activity, including paid and unpaid work
domestic and everyday life
leisure
education and training
using ICT in social roles

These are examples of t he social roles and act ivit ies in which adult s need lit eracy and
numeracy in order t o f unct ion independent ly and exercise choice. This adult numeracy
core curriculum provides t he skills f ramework, t he learner provides t he cont ext , and t he
t eacher needs t o bring t hem t oget her in a learning programme using relevant mat erials at
t he appropriat e level, t o support learners in achieving t heir goals.
Introduction
9
Core Curriculum
Numeracy Core Curriculum
Mathematics equips pupils with a uniquely powerful set of tools to
understand and change the world (The National Curriculum, QCA).
Changing the world may not be the immediate goal of adult learners, but
being numerate acquainted with the basic principles of mathematics
is essential to functioning independently within the world. In everyday life
we are confronted with numbers, from getting on the right bus or putting
coins in a parking meter, to choosing the best deal on a mobile phone or
a pension plan. Increasingly, we are bombarded with charts and
statistics to inform us, persuade us, impress us, convince us without
some understanding of how to interpret data it is difficult to see how we
can be independent citizens and consumers. And, in employment,
research has indicated that numeracy, even more than literacy, has a
powerful effect on earnings.
It is important that, as well as developing skills in manipulating numbers,
learners understand and make connections between different areas of
mathematics so that they are able to apply skills to solving problems in a
range of contexts. In the process, they may also begin to discover the joy
and power of mathematics.
Numeracy
Numeracy
At three I fell in love with
numbers. It was sheer ecstasy
for me to do sums and get the
right answers. Numbers were
toys with which I could play.
In them I found emotional
security; two plus two always
made, and would always
make, four no matter how
the world changed.
Shakuntala Devi, Author
I couldnt book holidays. I

couldnt write cheques if
they were over 13. Id
learnt to spell out figures
from a childrens book but
it only went up to 13.
Sue Torr, Adult Learner
Facts and figures illustrating progress fly
across frontiers like guided missiles directed
at people's minds. And, of course, those
who lag behind in such progress are the
most exposed to this propaganda.
HG Wells
Understanding and using

mathematical information
At t hi s l evel , adul t s can
read and understand
i nf ormat i on gi ven by numbers and
symbol s i n si mpl e graphi cal , numeri cal
and wri t t en mat eri al
specify and describe
a pract i cal probl em or t ask usi ng numbers
and measures
Calculating and manipulating
generate results
whi ch make sense and use gi ven met hods
and gi ven checki ng procedures
appropri at e t o t he speci f i ed purpose
Interpreting results and
communicating mathematical
information
present and explain results
whi ch show an underst andi ng of t he
i nt ended purpose usi ng appropri at e
numbers, measures, obj ect s or pi ct ures
read and understand
i nf ormat i on gi ven by numbers, symbol s,
si mpl e di agrams and chart s i n graphi cal ,
numeri cal and wri t t en mat eri al
a pract i cal probl em or t ask usi ng
numbers, measures and si mpl e shapes t o
record essent i al i nf ormat i on
generate results
t o a gi ven l evel of accuracy usi ng gi ven
met hods and gi ven checki ng procedures
appropri at e t o t he speci f i ed purpose
information
whi ch meet t he i nt ended purpose usi ng
appropri at e numbers, si mpl e di agrams
and symbol s
read and understand
i nf ormat i on gi ven by numbers, symbol s,
di agrams and chart s used f or di f f erent
purposes and i n di f f erent ways i n
graphi cal , numeri cal and wri t t en mat eri al
numbers, measures and di agrams t o
col l ect and record rel evant i nf ormat i on
generate results
t o a gi ven l evel of accuracy usi ng gi ven
met hods, measures and checki ng
procedures appropri at e t o t he speci f i ed
purpose
information
appropri at e numbers, di agrams, chart s
and symbol s
The progression between capabilities
12
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
Entry Level
The progression
between capabilities
read and understand
st rai ght f orward mat hemat i cal i nf ormat i on
used f or di f f erent purposes and
i ndependent l y sel ect rel evant i nf ormat i on
f rom gi ven graphi cal , numeri cal and
wri t t en mat eri al
a pract i cal act i vi t y, probl em or t ask usi ng
mat hemat i cal i nf ormat i on and l anguage
t o make accurat e observat i ons and
i dent i f y sui t abl e cal cul at i ons t o achi eve
an appropri at e out come
generate results
t o a gi ven l evel of accuracy usi ng
purpose
information
an appropri at e f ormat t o a gi ven l evel of
accuracy
read and understand
mat hemat i cal i nf ormat i on used f or
di f f erent purposes and i ndependent l y
sel ect and compare rel evant i nf ormat i on
f rom a vari et y of graphi cal , numeri cal and
a pract i cal act i vi t y, probl em or t ask usi ng
mat hemat i cal i nf ormat i on and l anguage
t o i ncrease underst andi ng and sel ect
appropri at e met hods f or carryi ng t hrough
a subst ant i al act i vi t y
generate results
t o an appropri at e l evel of accuracy usi ng
purpose
information
cl earl y and accurat el y usi ng numeri cal ,
graphi cal and wri t t en f ormat s appropri at e
t o purpose, f i ndi ngs and audi ence
13
Whole numbers N1/E1.1Count reliably up to 10 items
N1/E1.2Read and write numbers up to
10, including zero
N1/E1.3Order and compare numbers
up to 10, including zero
N1/E1.4Add single-digit numbers with
totals to 10
N1/E1.5Subtract single-digit numbers
from numbers up to 10
N1/E1.6Interpret , and =in
practical situations for solving
problems
N1/E1.7Use a calculator to check
calculations using whole numbers
N1/E2.1Count reliably up to 20 items
N1/E2.2Read, write, order and
compare numbers up to 100
N1/E2.3Add and subtract two-digit
whole numbers
N1/E2.4Recall addition and
subtraction facts to 10
N1/E2.5Multiply using single-digit
whole numbers
N1/E2.6Approximate by rounding to
the nearest 10
N1/E2.7Use and interpret , ,
and in practical situations for
solving problems
N1/E2.8Use a calculator to check
calculations using whole numbers
N2/E2.1Read, write and compare
halves and quarters of quantities
N2/E2.2Find halves and quarters of
small numbers of items or shapes
Fractions, decimals and percentages
Number: the progression between curriculumelements
14
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
Entry Level
The progression between
curriculum elements
N1/L2.1Read, write, order and
compare positive and negative
numbers of any size in a practical
context
N1/L2.2Carry out calculations with
numbers of any size using efficient
methods
N1/L2.3Calculate ratio and direct
proportion
N1/L2.4Evaluate expressions and
make substitutions in given formulae
in words and symbols to produce
results
N2/L2.1Use fractions to order and
compare amounts or quantities
N2/L2.2Identify equivalencies between
fractions, decimals and percentages
N2/L2.3Evaluate one number as a
fraction of another
N2/L2.4Use fractions to add and
subtract amounts or quantities
N2/L2.5Order, approximate and
compare decimals when solving
practical problems
N2/L2.6Add, subtract, multiply and
divide decimals up to three places
N2/L2.7Order and compare
percentages and understand
percentage increase and decrease
N2/L2.8Find percentage parts of
quantities and measurements
N2/L2.9Evaluate one number as a
percentage of another
N2/L2.10Use a calculator to calculate
efficiently using whole numbers,
N1/E3.1Count, read, write, order and
compare numbers up to 1000
N1/E3.2Add and subtract using three-
digit whole numbers
N1/E3.3Recall addition and subtraction
facts to 20
N1/E3.4Multiply two-digit whole
numbers by single-digit whole numbers
N1/E3.5Recall multiplication facts
(e.g. multiples of 2, 3, 4, 5, 10)
N1/E3.6Divide two-digit whole numbers
by single-digit whole numbers and
interpret remainders
N1/E3.7Approximate by rounding
numbers less than 1000 to the nearest 10
or 100
N1/E3.8Estimate answers to calculations
N1/E3.9Use and interpret , , ,
and in practical situations for solving
problems
N2/E3.1Read, write and understand
common fractions (e.g.
3
/4,
2
/3,
1
/10)
N2/E3.2Recognise and use equivalent
forms (e.g.
5
/10
1
/2)
N2/E3.3Read, write and understand
decimals up to two decimal places in
practical contexts (such as: common
measures to one decimal place, e.g.
1.5 m; money in decimal notation, e.g.
2.37)
N2/E3.4Use a calculator to calculate
using whole numbers and decimals to
solve problems in context, and to
check calculations
compare numbers, including large
numbers
N1/L1.2Recognise negative numbers
in practical contexts
(e.g. temperatures)
divide using efficient written methods
N1/L1.4Multiply and divide whole
numbers by 10 and 100
N1/L1.5Recall multiplication facts up to
10 10 and make connections with
division facts
N1/L1.6Recognise numerical
relationships (e.g. multiples and squares)
N1/L1.7Work out simple ratio and
direct proportion
N1/L1.8Approximate by rounding
N1/L1.9Estimate answers to
calculations
N2/L1.1Read, write, order and compare
common fractions and mixed numbers
N2/L1.2Find parts of whole number
quantities or measurements (e.g.
2
/3 or
3
/4)
N2/L1.3Recognise equivalencies
between common fractions,
percentages and decimals (e.g. 50%
1
/2 , 0.25
1
/4) and use these to find part
of whole-number quantities
N2/L1.4Read, write, order and compare
decimals up to three decimal places
divide decimals up to two places
N2/L1.6Multiply and divide decimals by
10, 100
N2/L1.7Approximate decimals by rounding
to a whole number or two decimal places
compare simple percentages, and
understand simple percentage
increase and decrease
N2/L1.9Find simple percentage parts
of quantities and measurements
N2/L1.10Find simple percentage
increase and decrease
N2/L1.11Use a calculator to calculate
15
Common measures MSS1/E2.1Make amounts of money
up to 1 in different ways using 1p, 2p,
5p, 10p, 20p and 50p coins
MSS1/E2.2Calculate the cost of more
than one item and the change from a
transaction, in pence or in whole
pounds
MSS1/E2.3Read and record time in
common date formats
MSS1/E2.4Read and understand time
displayed on analogue and 12-hour
digital clocks in hours, half hours and
quarter hours
MSS1/E2.5Read, estimate, measure
and compare length using common
standard and non-standard units
(e.g. metre, centimetre, paces)
and compare weight using common
standard units (e.g. kilogram)
and compare capacity using common
standard and non-standard units
(e.g. litre, cupful)
MSS1/E2.8Read and compare
positive temperatures in everyday
situations such as weather charts
MSS1/E2.9Read simple scales to the
nearest labelled division
MSS2/E2.1Recognise and name 2-D
and 3-D shapes
MSS2/E2.2Describe the properties of
common 2-D and 3-D shapes
MSS2/E2.3Use positional vocabulary
MSS1/E1.1Recognise and select
coins and notes
MSS1/E1.2Relate familiar events to:
times of the day; days of the week;
seasons of the year
MSS1/E1.3Describe size and use
direct comparisons for the size of at
least two items
MSS1/E1.4Describe length, width,
height, and use direct comparisons for
length, width and height of items
MSS1/E1.5Describe weight and use
direct comparisons for the weight of
items
MSS1/E1.6Describe capacity and use
direct comparisons for the capacity of
items
MSS2/E1.1Recognise and name
common 2-D and 3-D shapes
MSS2/E1.2Understand everyday
positional vocabulary (e.g. between,
inside or near to)
Shape and space
Measures, shape and space: the progression between curriculum
elements
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
16
Entry Level
Literacy progression
17
MSS1/L1.1Add, subtract, multiply and
divide sums of money and record
MSS1/L1.2Read, measure and record
time in common date formats and in
the 12-hour and 24-hour clock
MSS1/L1.3Calculate using time
MSS1/L1.4Read, estimate, measure
and compare length, weight, capacity
and temperature using common units
and instruments
MSS1/L1.5Read, estimate, measure
and compare distance
MSS1/L1.6Add and subtract common
units of measure within the same
system
MSS1/L1.7Convert units of measure
in the same system
MSS1/L1.8Work out the perimeter of
simple shapes
MSS1/L1.9Work out the area of
rectangles
MSS1/L1.10Work out simple volume
(e.g. cuboids)
MSS2/L1.1Solve problems using the
mathematical properties of regular
2-D shapes (e.g. tessellation or
symmetry)
MSS2/L1.2Draw 2-D shapes in
different orientations using grids (e.g.
in diagrams or plans)
MSS1/E3.1Add and subtract sums of
money using decimal notation
MSS1/E3.2Round sums of money to
the nearest and 10p and make
approximate calculations
MSS1/E3.3Read, measure and record
time
MSS1/E3.4Read and interpret
distance in everyday situations
and compare length using non-
standard and standard units
and compare weight using non-
and compare capacity using non-
MSS1/E3.8Choose and use
appropriate units and measuring
instruments
MSS1/E3.9Read, measure and
compare temperature using common
units and instruments
MSS2/E3.1Sort 2-D and 3-D shapes to
solve practical problems using
properties (e.g. lines of symmetry, side
length, angles)
MSS1/L2.1Calculate with sums of
money and convert between currencies
MSS1/L2.2Calculate, measure and
record time in different formats
MSS1/L2.3Estimate, measure and
compare length, distance, weight and
capacity using metric and, where
appropriate, imperial units
MSS1/L2.4Estimate, measure and
compare temperature, including
reading scales and conversion tables
MSS1/L2.5Calculate with units of
measure within the same system
MSS1/L2.6Calculate with units of
measure between systems, using
conversion tables and scales, and
approximate conversion factors
MSS1/L2.7Understand and use given
formulae for finding perimeters and
areas of regular shapes
(e.g. rectangular and circular surfaces)
formulae for finding areas of
composite shapes (e.g. non-
rectangular rooms or plots of land)
formulae for finding volumes of regular
shapes (e.g. a cuboid or cylinder)
MSS1/L2.10Work out dimensions
from scale drawings (e.g. 1:20)
MSS2/L2.1Recognise and use
common 2-D representations of 3-D
objects (e.g. in maps and plans)
MSS2/L2.2Solve problems involving
2-D shapes and parallel lines (e.g. in
laying down carpet tiles)
17
curriculum elements
Data and statistical measures HD1/E1.1Extract simple information
from lists
HD1/E1.2Sort and classify objects
using a single criterion
HD1/E1.3Construct simple
representations or diagrams, using
knowledge of numbers, measures or
shape and space
HD1/E2.1Extract information from
lists, tables, simple diagrams and
block graphs
HD1/E2.2Make numerical
comparisons from block graphs
HD1/E2.3Sort and classify objects
using two criteria
HD1/E2.4Collect simple numerical
information
HD1/E2.5Represent information so
that it makes sense to others
(e.g. in lists, tables and diagrams)
Probability
Handling data: the progression between curriculumelements
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
18
Entry Level
HD1/L1.1Extract and interpret
information (e.g. in tables, diagrams,
charts and line graphs)
HD1/L1.2Collect, organise and
represent discrete data (e.g. in tables,
charts, diagrams and line graphs)
HD1/L1.3Find the arithmetical
average (mean) for a set of data
HD1/L1.4Find the range for a set of
data
HD1/L2.1Extract discrete and
continuous data from tables,
diagrams, charts and line graphs
HD1/L2.2Collect, organise and
represent discrete and continuous
data in tables, charts, diagrams and
line graphs
HD1/L2.3Find the mean, median and
mode, and use them as appropriate to
compare two sets of data
HD1/L2.4Find the range and use it to
describe the spread within sets of data
HD1/E3.1Extract numerical
information from lists, tables, diagrams
and simple charts
HD1/E3.2Make numerical
comparisons from bar charts and
pictograms
HD1/E3.3Make observations and
record numerical information using a
tally
HD1/E3.4Organise and represent
information in different ways so that it
makes sense to others
HD2/L1.1Show that some events are
more likely to occur than others
HD2/L1.2Express the likelihood of an
event using fractions, decimals and
percentages with the probability scale
of 0 to 1
HD2/L2.1Identify the range of possible
outcomes of combined events and
record the information using diagrams
or tables
curriculum elements
19
20
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
Skills, knowledge and understanding
Adul t s shoul d be t aught t o:
count reliably up to 10 items
underst and t hat i f i t ems are rearranged t he
number st ays t he same
know how t o count on and back f rom any
smal l number
Example
Count chi l dren i n a group t o make sure no-
one i s mi ssi ng.
Count t he number of screws needed f or a
hi nge.
read and write numbers up to 10,
including zero
underst and t hat numeral s can be
represent ed i n di f f erent ways, e.g. Roman
numeral s, Arabi c numeral s
recogni se Arabi c numeral s wri t t en i n
di f f erent f ont s and st yl es e.g. 9, , 4, ;
Sel ect t he correct numbered f l oor but t on i n
a l i f t .
Wri t e down a t el ephone number.
Input di gi t s usi ng a numeri c key pad
(e.g. t el ephone, f ax machi ne, remot e cont rol
devi ce).
order and compare numbers up to 10,
including zero
underst and and use t he vocabul ary of
compari ng numbers, e.g. more t han, l ess
t han
underst and ordi nal numbers, e.g. f i rst ,
second, t hi rd
Fol l ow di rect i ons, e.g. Take t he l i f t t o t he
t hi rd f l oor.
add single-digit numbers with totals
to 10
underst and t he operat i on of addi t i on and
rel at ed vocabul ary, e.g. add, sum of , t ot al ,
pl us, et c.
know al l pai rs of numbers wi t h a t ot al of 10
underst and t hat addi t i on i s commut at i ve
(t he concept not t he t ermi nol ogy)
Cal cul at e t ot al s, e.g. reams of paper i n a f ul l
box of f i ve pl us t hree packs on t he shel f .
subtract single-digit numbers from
numbers up to 10
underst and t he operat i on of subt ract i on
and rel at ed vocabul ary, e.g. di f f erence,
t ake away, l ess t han
know subt ract i on f act s f or pai rs of numbers
wi t h t ot al s t o 10, e.g. 10 6 4
know how t o add back t o check,
e.g. 10 6 4, 6 4 10
underst and t hat subt ract i on i s not
commut at i ve and t hat , usi ng whol e
numbers, you can onl y subt ract a number
f rom i t sel f or f rom a l arger one
underst and t hat subt ract i ng zero l eaves a
number unchanged
Work out t he short f al l i n numbers, e.g. eggs
f or a reci pe, pl ant s t o f i l l a di spl ay t ray, cups
t o serve vi si t ors, vol unt eers f or a j umbl e sal e.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
symbol s i n si mpl e graphi cal ,
numbers and measures
generate results
whi ch make sense and use gi ven
met hods and gi ven checki ng
procedures appropri at e t o t he
speci f i ed purpose
whi ch show an underst andi ng of
t he i nt ended purpose usi ng
appropri at e numbers, measures,
obj ect s or pi ct ures
Whole numbers N1/E1
1
2
3
4
5
Number
21
Sample activities
Count i t ems, re-arrange t hem and count

t hem agai n.
Count on i n 1p coi ns st art i ng f rom a

di f f erent number (e.g. f rom 3p, f rom 5p)
up t o 10.
Wri t e a short l i st i n Word, e.g. a

shoppi ng l i st . Count t he number of i t ems
and t hen use t he aut omat i c numberi ng
but t on t o check.
Using games to develop numeracy
Games can help learners to practise matching, counting and
computational skills such as doubling, addition, subtraction and
tables. Some games combine these skills with strategy, and this can
help learners to develop problem-solving skills.
Childrens boards games or dominoes can be used in family
numeracy sessions. Adult games include bingo, dominoes, card
games, strategy games such as backgammon, and traditional African
games such as owareand ayo, which are now available
commercially.
Concept of number
Numbers can be thought of in different ways, e.g. as a word, a
symbol, an image of a number of items, a point on a scale. It is
important that the tutor establishes the learners idea of number and
works from there to develop understanding.
Using a number line
Number lines (horizontal or vertical) are helpful for some learners as
a visual aid to counting on and back. At a later stage, they can be
extended to negative numbers. They are a valuable tool for
understanding fractions and decimals, and the concept of discrete
and continuous measure.
Share and compare number words to 10 in

different languages, and different ways of
writing numerals.
Match numbers in words and numerals.
Practise finding numbers on different

keypads, e.g. calculator, telephone, keyboard.
Read numbers in everyday material and

contexts, e.g. signs, notices, adverts, posters.
Match ordinal and cardinal numbers.
Write ordinal numbers next to a sequence, such as a list of instructions.
Fill in the missing numbers in a sequence.
Place a jumbled sequence of numbers in order.
Ask l earners what di f f erent words t hey use f or addi t i on.
Expl ore di f f erent st rat egi es f or ment al addi t i on by el i ci t i ng l earners met hods,
e.g. 5 4 i s one l ess t han 5 5.
Use obj ect s or coi ns t o rei nf orce t he i dea of addi t i on as groupi ng t oget her.
Fi nd al l t he pai rs of numbers wi t h t ot al s t o 10, usi ng coi ns i f needed.
Use a number l i ne t o pract i se addi t i on by count i ng on.
Ask l earners what di f f erent words t hey

use f or subt ract i on.
Expl ore di f f erent st rat egi es f or ment al

subt ract i on, such as count i ng on, near
numbers , such as 9 5 i s one l ess t han
10 5.
Use obj ect s or coi ns t o subt ract al l t he

si ngl e-di gi t numbers f rom 10.
Compare t he resul t s of subt ract i ng

si ngl e-di gi t numbers f rom 10 wi t h t he
resul t s of addi ng al l t he pai rs of numbers
t hat make 10. Look f or pat t erns.
Use a number l i ne t o pract i se subt ract i on

by count i ng back.
22
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
interpret , and =in practical
situations for solving problems
underst and t hat and represent
operat i ons of addi t i on and subt ract i on
underst and represent s equal i t y, and
know rel at ed vocabul ary, e.g. equal s, i s
equal t o, i s t he same as
Example
Use symbol s t o record whol e-number
cal cul at i ons when sol vi ng probl ems.
use a calculator to check calculations
using whole numbers
know t he si gns f or addi t i on, subt ract i on,
equal s
recogni se t he numeral s 09
underst and t he order t o key i n numbers and
operat ors
know how t o cl ear t he di spl ay, and
underst and t hat t hi s shoul d be done bef ore
st art i ng a new cal cul at i on
Any cal cul at i ons at t hi s l evel .
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
Whole numbers N1/E1
6
7
Number
23
Sample activities
Mat ch cards wi t h equi val ent addi t i ons, e.g. 5 3, 5 pl us 3, 3 5, t he sum of 3 and 5,
5 add 3.
Mat ch cards wi t h equi val ent subt ract i ons, e.g. 5 3, t ake 3 f rom 5, 5 t ake away 3, 5 subt ract
3, t he di f f erence bet ween 3 and 5.
Make number sent ences f rom cards wi t h t he numbers 09, and symbol s , , .
Ident i f y t he symbol s , and on si mpl e hand-hel d and on-screen cal cul at ors, and on
comput er keyboards.
Compare si mpl e hand-hel d and on-screen cal cul at ors i n t erms of t hei r numeral s, symbol s f or
, and , and t hei r l ayout .
Use a cal cul at or t o i nvest i gat e t he rel at i onshi p bet ween addi t i on and subt ract i on.
Use a cal cul at or t o check any cal cul at i ons at t hi s l evel .

24
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
add and subtract two-digit whole
numbers
recall addition and subtraction facts
to 10
underst and t hat t here are di f f erent
st rat egi es t o hel p wi t h ment al addi t i on and
subt ract i on
underst and t hat subt ract i on i s t he i nverse
of addi t i on
know how t o al i gn numbers f or col umn
addi t i on
Cal cul at e t he cost i n pence of t wo i t ems,
e.g. a newspaper and a can of dri nk.
Cal cul at e t he di f f erence i n pri ce i n pence
bet ween t wo product s, e.g. bet ween t wo
cans of dri nk.
multiply using single-digit whole
numbers
underst and and use t he vocabul ary of
mul t i pl i cat i on, e.g. mul t i pl i ed by, t i mes, l ot s
of
underst and t he operat i on of mul t i pl i cat i on
as repeat ed addi t i on,
e.g. 3 5 5 5 5
underst and t hat mul t i pl i cat i on i s
commut at i ve, e.g. 2 4 4 2, but t hat
t he meani ng i s di f f erent , e.g. t ake 2 t abl et s
4 t i mes a day (4 2) i s di f f erent f rom t ake
4 t abl et s t wi ce a day (2 4)
know doubl es of numbers t o 10
underst and t he rel at i onshi p bet ween
hal vi ng and doubl i ng
Check del i very of goods i n smal l bat ches.
Cal cul at e t he t ot al number of i t ems, e.g. t hree
books of st amps wi t h f our st amps i n each.
count reliably up to 20 items
count i n t wos and t ens up t o 100
count on i n t ens up t o 100, st art i ng f rom
any t wo-di gi t number
Example
Count t he i t ems i n a del i very.
read, write, order and compare
numbers up to 100
underst and t hat t he posi t i on of a di gi t
si gni f i es i t s val ue
know what each di gi t i n a t wo-di gi t number
represent s, i ncl udi ng t he use of zero as a
pl ace hol der
recogni se odd and even numbers up t o 30
Choose numbers on a l ot t ery t i cket and check
wi nni ng numbers.
Fi nd an address by readi ng door numbers.
Read speed l i mi t s on t raf f i c si gns.
Use page numbers t o l ocat e i nf ormat i on.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
i nf ormat i on gi ven by numbers,
symbol s, si mpl e di agrams and
chart s i n graphi cal , numeri cal and
numbers, measures and si mpl e
shapes t o record essent i al
i nf ormat i on
generate results
gi ven met hods and gi ven
checki ng procedures appropri at e
t o t he speci f i ed purpose
whi ch meet t he i nt ended purpose
usi ng appropri at e numbers,
si mpl e di agrams and symbol s
Whole numbers N1/E2
1
2
3
4
5
Number
25
Expl ore st rat egi es f or addi ng and

subt ract i ng numbers, e.g. breaki ng down
and recombi ni ng, l ooki ng f or pai rs whi ch
make 10, st art i ng wi t h t he l argest number
and count i ng on i n t ens or ones, i dent i f yi ng
near doubl es.
Mat ch cards wi t h subt ract i on f act s t o

rel at ed addi t i on,
e.g. 12 9 3, 3 9 12.
Break down numbers and use t he

knowl edge of pai rs whi ch t ot al 10 t o
l earn pai rs wi t h t ot al s t o 20,
e.g. 13 7 10 3 7 20.
Appl y st rat egi es t o sol vi ng probl ems wi t h

whol e numbers.
Di scuss mul t i pl i cat i on, usi ng vocabul ary

such as l ot s of , t i mes, et c., usi ng pract i cal
exampl es.
Wri t e repeat ed addi t i on sums as

mul t i pl i cat i on, and vi ce versa,
e.g. 5 5 5 3 5; 2 6 6 6;
mat ch usi ng cards.
Ext end sequences, f i l l i n t he gaps, usi ng

mul t i pl es of 2 and 10.
Mat ch pai rs of numbers whi ch are

hal ves/ doubl es.
Strategies for mental addition
Put the larger number first and count on:
5 27 27 5 count on from 27
Count on in tens:
54 23 54, 64, 74 3
Partition numbers and recombine:
37 16 37 3 13 40 13
Use near numbers and adjust:
27 19 27 20 1 47 1
Break both numbers into tens and units:
24 58 20 50 4 8 70 12
Use doubles:
38 36 double 40, subtract 2, subtract 4
Use combinations of these:
64 27 64 20 7 84 7 84 6 1 91
Strategies for mental subtraction
Count on from the smaller number:
23 18 count on from 18 to 20 and from 20 to 23
Count on in ones and tens:
83 58 58 to 60, 70, 80 to 83
Partition numbers:
98 43 98 40 3 58 3
43 19 43 20 1 23 1
Sample activities
Count t he number of obj ect s or i t ems i n a l i st .
Count t he val ue of a pi l e of : 10p coi ns, count i ng i n t ens; 2p coi ns count i ng i n t wos.
Count on i n t ens, usi ng 10p coi ns, e.g. t o gi ve change, t o pay f or somet hi ng, t o count t aki ngs
f or t he bank, et c.
Compl et e number l i nes t o pract i se count i ng i n t wos or t ens.
Expl ore t he Edi t : Fi l l , Seri es f unct i on on a spreadsheet , usi ng di f f erent St art and St op val ues,
and St ep val ues of t wo or t en.
Wri t e t wo-di gi t numbers as t he sum of t ens and uni t s, e.g. 36 30 6.
Mat ch numbers i n f i gures t o numbers i n words.
Read and compare numbers i n everyday mat eri al and cont ext s, e.g. si gns, not i ces, advert s.
Fi l l i n mi ssi ng numbers i n a sequence and on a number l i ne (whol e, odd, even numbers).
Look up wi nni ng l ot t ery numbers on t el et ext (l earners may need hel p wi t h page numbers).
Ent er some si mpl e t ext on a word processor and experi ment wi t h di f f erent f ont si zes.
26
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
read, write and compare halves and
quarters of quantities
know t he words hal f , quart er and t he
symbol s
1
/ 2,
1
/ 4
underst and t hat t wo hal ves make one
whol e
underst and t hat f our quart ers make one
whol e
underst and t hat t wo quart ers and one hal f
are equi val ent
Example
Underst and
1
/ 2 pri ce, hal f pri ce.
Know t hat hal f an hour i s l onger t han a
quart er of an hour.
find halves and quarters of small
numbers of items or shapes
underst and t he connect i on bet ween a hal f
of and share (or di vi de) i nt o t wo equal
groups or part s
underst and t he connect i on bet ween one
quart er of and share (or di vi de) i nt o f our
equal groups or part s
know hal ves of even numbers t o 20
Est i mat e equal port i ons of f ood t o share wi t h
ot hers, e.g. cut a pi zza i nt o quart ers.
Work out how many peopl e t o a t eam i n a
l ei sure act i vi t y, e.g. pl ayi ng f oot bal l i n t he
park.
approximate by rounding to the
nearest 10
underst and pl ace val ue f or uni t s and t ens
Example
Round numbers t o make approxi mat e
cal cul at i ons.
use and interpret , , and
in practical situations for solving
problems
underst and t hat , and represent
operat i ons
use a calculator to check calculations
using whole numbers
underst and t he order t o ent er a t wo-di gi t
number
underst and t he order t o key i n numbers and
operat ors
know how t o cl ear t he di spl ay and cancel a
wrong ent ry
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
i nf ormat i on
generate results
Whole numbers N1/E2
Fractions N2/E2
6
7
8
1
2
Number
27
Sample activities
Mat ch words t o symbol s.
Fi nd exampl es of hal f and quart er used i n everyday mat eri al s, e.g. hal f -pri ce sal e.
El i ci t pract i cal exampl es of t he use of hal ves and quart ers, e.g. sport s (pi t ch, hal f -t i me),
measures (pi nt , hal f -pi nt ), t i me (hal f an hour, quart er of an hour), et c.
Rel at e hal ves and quart ers t o posi t i ons on a cl ock f ace.
Invest i gat e how many ways a pi ece of paper can be f ol ded i n hal f , e.g. a square, a rect angl e.
Mat ch shaded f ract i ons of shapes t o f ract i ons. (Ensure an underst andi ng of t wo equal part s,
rat her t han j ust t wo part s.) Use di f f erent shapes di vi ded i n di f f erent ori ent at i ons, not j ust
vert i cal di vi si ons.
Di vi de smal l col l ect i ons of obj ect s i nt o hal ves, quart ers. Di scuss st rat egi es.
Pract i se usi ng hal vi ng pat t erns, e.g. 64 32 16.
Use si mpl e graphi c sof t ware (e.g. Pai nt ) t o creat e, di vi de and col our si mpl e shapes i nt o hal ves
or quart ers.
Sample activities
Round pri ces i n pence t o t he nearest 10p.
Perf orm pract i cal t asks usi ng measuri ng i nst rument s measure t o nearest 10 cm, et c.
Set up a spreadsheet usi ng t he ROUND f unct i on f or l earners t o pract i se and sel f -check roundi ng
numbers t o t he nearest 10 (e.g. i n Excel , ROUND(A1,-1) i n cel l B1 aut omat i cal l y rounds a
number i n A1 t o t he nearest 10; see Excel Hel p).
Mat ch words t o symbol s, usi ng a range of vocabul ary.
Mat ch word probl ems t o wri t t en cal cul at i ons.
Transl at e si ngl e-st ep word probl ems i nt o symbol s and sol ve.
Use a cal cul at or t o i nvest i gat e t he rel at i onshi p bet ween addi t i on and mul t i pl i cat i on, and
bet ween addi t i on and subt ract i on.
Use a cal cul at or t o check any cal cul at i ons at t hi s l evel .
Compare t he symbol s f or mul t i pl y on hand-hel d and on-screen cal cul at ors and comput er
keyboards.
28
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
count, read, write, order and compare
numbers up to 1000
know what each di gi t i n a t hree-di gi t
number represent s, i ncl udi ng t he use of
zero as a pl ace hol der
recogni se odd and even numbers
count on or back i n 10s or 100s st art i ng
f rom any t wo-di gi t or t hree-di gi t number,
up t o 1000
Example
Recogni se when house numbers go up i n odd
or even numbers.
Fi nd i t ems f or an order f rom bi n numbers.
Wri t e a cheque.
Carry out a st ock check.
add and subtract using three-digit
whole numbers
recall addition and subtraction facts
to 20
st rat egi es f or addi ng and subt ract i ng
know how t o al i gn numbers i n col umn
addi t i on
met hods of checki ng answers, e.g. addi ng
i n a di f f erent order, usi ng i nverses, usi ng a
cal cul at or
Cal cul at e t he product i on short f al l f rom a dai l y
t arget .
multiply two-digit whole numbers by
single-digit whole numbers
recall multiplication facts
(e.g. multiples of 2, 3, 4, 5, 10)
recogni se t wo-di gi t and t hree-di gi t
mul t i pl es of 2, 5 or 10 and t hree-di gi t
mul t i pl es of 50 and 100
underst and how t he di st ri but i ve l aw can be
used i n mul t i pl i cat i on (t he concept , not t he
t ermi nol ogy)
st rat egi es f or mul t i pl yi ng
Cal cul at e t he t ot al number of i t ems i n
bat ches, e.g. 5 crat es wi t h 16 boxes t o a
crat e.
Fi l l i n t he amount s on a payi ng-i n sl i p.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
symbol s, di agrams and chart s
used f or di f f erent purposes and i n
di f f erent ways i n graphi cal ,
numbers, measures and di agrams
t o col l ect and record rel evant
i nf ormat i on
generate results
gi ven met hods, measures and
di agrams, chart s and symbol s
Whole numbers N1/E3
1
2
3
4
5
Number
29
Sample activities
Wri t e t hree-di gi t numbers as sums of hundreds, t ens and uni t s,

e.g. 367 300 60 7.
Invest i gat i on: how many numbers can be made f rom t hree gi ven di gi t s?
Pract i se sel ect i ng pages on t el et ext .
Mat ch numbers i n f i gures t o numbers i n words.
Invest i gat i on: hi ghl i ght even numbers i n an el ect roni c number square. Look f or a pat t ern and
est abl i sh a rul e f or even numbers. Whi ch numbers are not hi ghl i ght ed? Look f or a pat t ern and
est abl i sh a rul e f or odd numbers.
Ext end number sequences; f i l l i n t he gaps.
Pl ace j umbl ed number sequences i n order.
Mat ch cards wi t h subt ract i on f act s t o

rel at ed addi t i on f act s,
e.g. 20 14 6, 6 14 20.
Share st rat egi es f or ment al addi t i on and

subt ract i on and f or checki ng answers.
Share wri t t en met hods of addi t i on and

subt ract i on rel at ed t o ment al st rat egi es
and l earners own met hods.
Appl y ment al st rat egi es and wri t t en

met hods t o sol vi ng probl ems wi t h whol e
numbers.
Hi ghl i ght mul t i pl es of 2, 5, 10 i n t urn on a

number square. Look f or pat t erns, and
est abl i sh rul es f or mul t i pl es of 2, 5, 10.
Does t he rul e hol d f or t hree-di gi t numbers?
Use a cal cul at or t o check.
Use a cal cul at or t o f i nd mul t i pl es of 50 and

100 up t o 1000. Look f or pat t erns and
est abl i sh t he rul es f or mul t i pl es of 50 and
100.
Ext end sequences of mul t i pl es. Fi l l i n t he

gaps.
Share st rat egi es f or mul t i pl i cat i on,

e.g. 2 26 i s t wo 25s and t wo 1s, or t wo
20s and t wo 6s, et c.
Share wri t t en met hods of mul t i pl i cat i on

rel at ed t o ment al st rat egi es and l earners
own met hods.
(See Level 1, page 35, f or exampl es of

i nf ormal met hods and st andard met hods).
Strategies for mental addition and subtraction
Use the same strategies as for two-digit numbers and extend into
hundreds. See page 25.
Strategies for mental multiplication
To multiply by 2, split into tens and units and double:
2 36 is double thirty plus double 6
To multiply by 4, double and double again:
4 25 is double 25 which is 50 and double again which is 100
To multiply by 5, multiply by ten and halve:
5 14 is half of 10 14 which is half of 140
To multiply by 15, multiply by 10, halve it and add the two together
3 19 (3 20) 3 60 3 57
Split numbers (use distributive law):
3 56 3 (50 6) (3 50) + (3 6) 150 18
30
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
approximate by rounding numbers
less than 1000 to the nearest 10 or 100
underst and pl ace val ue f or uni t s, t ens,
hundreds
cal cul at i ons.
estimate answers to calculations
know how to approximate numbers by
rounding and use in approximate calculations
understand that a knowledge of context
enables guessing at answers (e.g. it should
be about . . .), or judging if answers are
sensible (e.g. thats far too big; it doesnt make
sense to have an answer less than 1, etc.)
Check t hat answers t o probl ems are sensi bl e.
use and interpret , , , and
in practical situations for solving
problems
underst and t hat , , , represent
operat i ons
divide two-digit whole numbers by
single-digit whole numbers and
interpret remainders
underst and di vi si on as repeat ed subt ract i on
underst and t hat di vi si on i s t he i nverse of
mul t i pl i cat i on
underst and t hat di vi si on i s not
commut at i ve, i .e. 8 4 i s not t he same as
4 8
underst and t he concept of remai nder, and
t hat remai nders need t o be i nt erpret ed i n
cont ext when sol vi ng probl ems
Example
Work out t he number of cars needed t o
t ransport a group of peopl e.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
i nf ormat i on
generate results
Whole numbers N1/E3
6
7
8
9
Number
31
Underl i ne t he t ens di gi t i n a t hree-di gi t

number; round t o t he nearest 10.
Underl i ne t he hundreds di gi t i n a t hree-

di gi t number; round t o t he nearest 100.
Round di st ances t o t he nearest 10 or 100

mi l es.
Round wei ght s t o t he nearest 10 or 100

grams.
Set up a spreadsheet usi ng t he ROUND

f unct i on f or l earners t o pract i se and sel f -
check roundi ng numbers t o t he nearest 100
(e.g. i n Excel , ROUND(A1,-2) i n cel l B1
aut omat i cal l y rounds a number i n A1 t o t he
nearest 100; see Excel Hel p).
Di scuss t he use of est i mat i on f or

di f f erent purposes, e.g. checki ng t he si ze
of answers obt ai ned wi t h a cal cul at or,
get t i ng a rough i dea of cost , si ze,
quant i t y, et c.
Est i mat e t he answers t o cal cul at i ons

when sol vi ng probl ems.
Mat ch words t o symbol s, usi ng a range of vocabul ary.
Mat ch word probl ems t o wri t t en cal cul at i ons.
Transl at e si ngl e-st ep word probl ems i nt o symbol s, and sol ve.
Sample activities
Use obj ect s or coi ns t o i l l ust rat e di vi si on

as repeat ed subt ract i on.
Di scuss t he i nt erpret at i on of remai nders i n

t he cont ext of probl ems.
Use a cal cul at or t o i nvest i gat e t he

rel at i onshi p bet ween mul t i pl i cat i on and
di vi si on.
Strategies for mental division
To divide by 2, split and halve:
76 2 half of 60 and half of 16
To divide by 4, halve and halve again:
28 4 half of 28 which is 14 and half of 14 which is 7
Break down into factors:
90 6 (90 3) 2 30 2 15
Languagein solving problems
Language can be a barrier to solving problems. Learners who can
work out the answer to a simple calculation may not be able to
solve a word problem that comes down to the same operation and
numbers. Extracting given information, deciding what additional
information is required and how to obtain it, and then knowing
what to do with it, are difficult skills to teach and learn. Discussion
of a wide variety of problems is essential. Present the same problem
with different numbers. Present problems with the same numbers
that require different operations. For each problem, encourage
learners to ask: What do I know? What do I need to know?
Encourage the use of approximation and estimation, and ways of
checking answers, including: What does my answer mean, and does
it make sense?
32
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
recognise and use equivalent forms
(e.g.
5
/10
1
/2)
underst and t hat equi val ent f ract i ons l ook
di f f erent but have t he same val ue
underst and t hat when t he t op and bot t om
number of a f ract i on are t he same, t hi s i s
equi val ent t o 1
In t he cont ext of measures, recogni se
rel at i onshi ps, e.g. t hat 5 mm i s hal f a
cent i met re, 50 cm i s hal f a met re, 500 g i s
hal f a ki l o, 500 ml i s hal f a l i t re.
read, write and understand decimals
up to two decimal places in practical
contexts (such as: common measures
to one decimal place, e.g. 1.5 m;
money in decimal notation, e.g. 2.37)
underst and t hat t he deci mal poi nt
separat es pounds and pence, or m and cm
underst and t he use of zero as a pl ace
hol der, e.g. 1.05 i s 1 and 5p
underst and t he use of a l eadi ng zero,
e.g. 35p 0.35; 0.5 m 50 cm
recogni se .5 as a hal f , e.g. 2.5 m as 2
1
/ 2 m
Read pri ce l abel s wri t t en i n deci mal not at i on.
Underst and pri ces on a menu i n a rest aurant ,
hot el or caf .
use a calculator to calculate using
whole numbers and decimals to solve
problems in context, and to check
calculations
know how t o key i n and i nt erpret money
cal cul at i ons e.g. key i n 85p as 0.85,
i nt erpret 8.2 as 8.20
underst and t hat a cal cul at or wi l l
somet i mes di spl ay a st ri ng of di gi t s af t er
t he deci mal poi nt , and t hat i t i s onl y
necessary (at t hi s l evel ) t o read t he f i rst
t wo, e.g. 1.33333333 i s 1.33
know and use st rat egi es t o check answers
obt ai ned wi t h a cal cul at or
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
i nf ormat i on
generate results
Fractions and decimals N2/E3
read, write and understand common
fractions (e.g.
3
/4,
2
/3,
1
/10)
underst and t hat t he bot t om number
(denomi nat or) i ndi cat es t he number of
equal part s i n t he whol e
underst and t hat a uni t f ract i on i s one part
of a whol e di vi ded i nt o equal part s
underst and t hat non-uni t f ract i ons are
several equal part s of a whol e, i ndi cat ed by
t he t op number (numerat or)
Example
Underst and f ract i ons used i n sal e si gns and
speci al of f ers, e.g.
1
/ 3 of f .
1
2
3
4
Number
33
Ci rcl e equi val ent f ract i ons i n a l i st ,

e.g.
1
/ 2,
5
/ 10,
50
/ 100.
Invest i gat i on l ook f or a pat t ern i n f ract i ons equi val ent t o
1
/ 2,
e.g.
2
/ 4,
3
/ 6,
4
/ 8,
5
/ 10,
10
/ 20,
50
/ 100. Wri t e more f ract i ons equi val ent t o
1
/ 2.
Ci rcl e f ract i ons i n a l i st equal t o 1.
Answer quest i ons l i ke How many pence i n 1.60, 2.06?, et c., t o rei nf orce deci mal
not at i on.
Read sums of money wri t t en i n deci mal not at i on f rom advert s, pri ce l i st s, menus.
Wri t e amount s i n pence usi ng deci mal not at i on, e.g. 45p 0.45.
Sel ect coi ns (1, 10p, 1p) t o mat ch sums of money i n deci mal not at i on.
Use a met re rul e t o show how deci mal part s of met res are wri t t en.
Emphasi se t he use of zero i n 1.50 but not i n 1.5 m.
Ent er t he same l i st of numbers, t o one deci mal pl ace, i n t wo col umns i n a spreadsheet .
Format t he second col umn t o currency and compare numbers i n each col umn.
Compare di f f erent cal cul at ors, and i dent i f y

di f f erences.
Di scuss t he benef i t s and pi t f al l s of usi ng a

cal cul at or.
Di scuss met hods of checki ng answers

obt ai ned usi ng a cal cul at or, e.g. usi ng
i nverse operat i ons, addi ng or mul t i pl yi ng i n
a di f f erent order, est i mat i on.
Provi de cal cul at or i nvest i gat i ons t o devel op

number and cal cul at or ski l l s.
Compare t he symbol s f or di vi de on hand-

hel d and on-screen cal cul at ors and
comput er keyboards.
Using a calculator
An electronic calculator can be used as a tool for learning, as well as
for performing calculations. Using a calculator for investigations and
puzzles, which can be tedious by manual computation, can stimulate
interest in numbers, number patterns and relationships, and can help
to develop mathematical thinking.
Learners need to be taught how to use a calculator, including
constant and memory functions to calculate efficiently, and, when
they are using a calculator to solve problems, they need to develop
strategies for checking answers.
Equivalent fractions
Sample activities
Mat ch shaded f ract i ons of shapes t o

f ract i ons. (Ensure t he underst andi ng of
equal part s, rat her t han j ust part s. Use
di f f erent shapes di vi ded i n di f f erent
ori ent at i ons, not j ust vert i cal di vi si ons.)
Mat ch f ract i ons i n words and symbol s.
Read f ract i ons used i n everyday mat eri al ,

e.g. i n newspaper headl i nes and report s,
advert s, cat al ogues, et c.
It will be obvious to most learners that one half of the first rectangle
is shaded; but what about the other rectangles? Using different
graphic representations can help to secure understanding of
equivalent fractions.
34
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
numbers, including large numbers
know what each di gi t represent s i n a
number up t o seven di gi t s, i ncl udi ng t he
use of zero as a pl ace hol der
underst and t he symbol s f or great er t han,
l ess t han
Example
Fi l e pl ans i n numeri cal order.
Read rout e numbers on del i very l abel s.
recognise negative numbers in
practical contexts (e.g. temperatures)
underst and t he words posi t i ve and
negat i ve
know t hat 0 C i s t he t emperat ure at whi ch
wat er f reezes
underst and t hat a negat i ve t emperat ure i s
bel ow zero
Underst and t he st orage t emperat ure on f rozen
f ood packet s.
add, subtract, multiply and divide
using efficient written methods
Use wri t t en met hods t o generat e resul t s
when sol vi ng probl ems usi ng whol e numbers.
multiply and divide whole numbers by
10 and 100
underst and pl ace val ue f or whol e numbers
and t o t wo-deci mal pl aces
Change whol e pounds t o pence, and vi ce
versa.
Change whol e met res t o cent i met res and vi ce
versa.
Change cent i met res t o mi l l i met res and vi ce
versa.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
st rai ght f orward mat hemat i cal
i nf ormat i on used f or di f f erent
purposes and i ndependent l y
sel ect rel evant i nf ormat i on f rom
gi ven graphi cal , numeri cal and
a pract i cal act i vi t y, probl em or
t ask usi ng mat hemat i cal
i nf ormat i on and l anguage t o
make accurat e observat i ons and
i dent i f y sui t abl e cal cul at i ons t o
achi eve an appropri at e out come
generate results
usi ng an appropri at e f ormat t o a
gi ven l evel of accuracy
Whole numbers N1/L1
1
2
3
4
See al so i n t he key ski l l s: Appl i cat i on of number key ski l l s l evel 1
Part A: In i nt erpret i ng i nf ormat i on . . .
In carryi ng out cal cul at i ons . . .
In i nt erpret i ng resul t s and present i ng your f i ndi ngs . . .
Part B: N1.1, N1.2, N1.3
Number
35
Sample activities
Read numbers i n everyday mat eri al , e.g. new car pri ces, house pri ces, cost of maj or const ruct i on
proj ect s, amount s of money spent on government i ni t i at i ves, Lot t ery wi ns (f i nd t hese on t el et ext
or t he Int ernet ), f oot bal l at t endance f i gures, et c.
Di scuss pl ace val ue; underl i ne t he di gi t i n l arge numbers correspondi ng t o mi l l i ons, t ens of
t housands, et c.
Order set s of numbers.
Gi ven a number i n words, wri t e i t i n di gi t s.
Mat ch words and numbers.
Choose t wo number cards f rom a pack and wri t e t wo st at ement s about t he numbers, usi ng t he
symbol s f or great er t han and l ess t han.
Fi nd t emperat ures f or di f f erent part of t he worl d (on t el et ext , web si t es, newspapers) and
descri be t hem as above or bel ow f reezi ng.
Di scuss negat i ve numbers i n t he cont ext of t emperat ure, and how t hey appear t o i ncrease i n
val ue as t he t emperat ure get s col der. Use a t emperat ure gauge f or a f reezer or t o measure t he
out door t emperat ure as a vi sual ai d.
Expl ai n own wri t t en met hods of cal cul at i on

f or addi t i on, subt ract i on, mul t i pl i cat i on and
di vi si on.
Pract i se ef f i ci ent wri t t en met hods i n t he

cont ext of sol vi ng probl ems, checki ng
answers wi t h a cal cul at or.
Written methods of multiplication
There are different written methods of calculation. Teachers need to
understand learners own methods in order to teach standard
methods successfully.
Grid method
134 15
Lattice
method
134 15
Standard method
134 15
Use a cal cul at or or spreadsheet

i nvest i gat i ons t o mul t i pl y whol e numbers
by 10, by 100, st art i ng wi t h si ngl e di gi t s,
t wo di gi t s, et c. Deduce rul es f rom t he
pat t erns. (Beware of rul es expressed as
add a nought , add t wo nought s , et c. Thi s
may hi de a l ack of underst andi ng of pl ace
val ue and l ead t o probl ems wi t h deci mal s
i t i s bet t er t o l ook at t he posi t i on of t he
di gi t s.)
Repeat t he above f or di vi si on. The i nverse

rul e knock of f a nought obvi ousl y doesnt
work i f t he number doesnt end i n zero.
For di vi si on, round numbers t o t he nearest

10, 100, et c. and use t hi s t o est i mat e t he
resul t s.
Fi l l i n t he mi ssi ng operat or i n number

sent ences, e.g. 250 ? 10 25.
1 3 4
1 3 4
1
5
1 2
5 5 0
2 0 1 0
134
15
670
1340
2010
1 1
100
1000
500
10
5
1340
+ 670
2010
30
300
150
4
40
20
36
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
recall multiplication facts up to
10 10 and make connections with
division facts
recognise numerical relationships
(e.g. multiples and squares)
recogni se mul t i pl es of 2 t o 9, up t o 100
recogni se mul t i pl es of 10, 50, 100, 1000
know square numbers up t o 10 10
Example
Use ment al met hods of mul t i pl i cat i on and
di vi si on t o generat e resul t s when sol vi ng
probl ems.
work out simple ratio and direct
proportion
underst and si mpl e rat i o as t he number of
part s, e.g. t hree part s t o one part
underst and di rect proport i on as t he same
rat e of i ncrease or decrease,
e.g. doubl e, hal f
Di l ut e a l i qui d i n a gi ven rat i o (e.g. weed
ki l l er, pai nt ).
Change quant i t i es i n a reci pe t o make t wi ce
as much.
approximate by rounding
underst and t hat numbers can be rounded t o
di f f erent degrees of accuracy,
e.g. nearest 10, 100, 1000, mi l l i on.
cal cul at i ons.
estimate answers to calculations
know how t o make approxi mat e
cal cul at i ons
underst and t hat a knowl edge of cont ext
enabl es guessi ng at answers (e.g. i t
shoul d be about . . .), or j udgi ng i f answers
are sensi bl e (e.g. t hat s f ar t oo bi g; i t
doesnt make sense t o have an answer l ess
t han 1, et c.)
Est i mat e t o check t hat answers are
reasonabl e.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
Whole numbers N1/L1
5
6
7
8
9
Part B: N1.1, N1.2, N1.3
Number
37
Sample activities
Look at st rat egi es f or deal i ng wi t h l arger

numbers,
e.g. 6 7 2 3 7 2 21 42;
8 9 8 10 8 80 8 72.
Use experi ence exchange. Learners share

st rat egi es f or l earni ng mul t i pl i cat i on
t abl es.
Invest i gat e f act ors, e.g. di f f erent ways of

maki ng 30 (3 10, 6 5). Look f or
pat t erns.
Expl ai n and cal cul at e square numbers.
Ext end sequences of mul t i pl es and square

numbers; f i l l i n t he gaps i n sequences.
Use t he Edi t : Fi l l , Seri es f unct i on on a

spreadsheet , usi ng di f f erent St art , St op
val ues and St ep val ues t o creat e number
pat t erns f or ot her l earners t o i dent i f y.
Use pract i cal cont ext s t o i l l ust rat e, e.g.

scal e quant i t i es up (or down), usi ng di rect
proport i on i n cooki ng reci pes, cement
mi xes, et c.
Cal cul at e t he quant i t i es i nvol ved i n di l ut i ng

l i qui ds, e.g. f or sof t dri nks, f ert i l i ser and
weed-ki l l er, t hi nni ng pai nt f or seal i ng new
pl ast er, et c.
Di scuss t he degree of accuracy i n approxi mat i ons, e.g. popul at i on f i gures, a sensi bl e roundi ng of
f oot bal l at t endance i n t he Premi er League f or report i ng purposes i n newspapers, compared wi t h
t he needs of t he f i nanci al depart ment s of t he cl ubs.
Pract i se approxi mat i ng by usi ng everyday exampl es, e.g. roundi ng di st ances of l ocal t owns t o
t he nearest 5 or 10 mi l es.
Round l arge numbers t o t he nearest mi l l i on, hundred t housand, t en t housand.
Set up a spreadsheet usi ng t he ROUND f unct i on f or l earners t o pract i se and sel f -check roundi ng
l arge numbers t o t he nearest 1000, 10,000, mi l l i on, et c. (e.g. i n Excel , ROUND(A1,-6) i n cel l
B1 aut omat i cal l y rounds a number i n A1 t o t he nearest mi l l i on; see Excel Hel p).
Use roundi ng and number bonds t o 10, t o est i mat e t ot al s, e.g. f rom shoppi ng l i st s, bi l l s, bank
st at ement s, et c. wi t h t he t ot al bl ocked out .
Approxi mat e cal cul at i ons: i nvest i gat e t he answers usi ng di f f erent approxi mat i ons. How accurat e
do you need t o be?
Multiplication facts
These are the multiplication facts that cause most difficulty.
x 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
2 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20
3 0 3 6 9 12 15 18 21 24 27 30
4 0 4 8 12 16 20 24 28 32 36 40
5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50
6 0 6 12 18 24 30 36 42 48 54 60
7 0 7 14 21 28 35 42 49 56 63 70
8 0 8 16 24 32 40 48 56 64 72 80
9 0 9 18 27 36 45 54 63 72 81 90
10 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
38
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
find parts of whole number quantities
or measurements (e.g.
2
/3 or
3
/4)
underst and t he rel at i onshi p bet ween uni t
f ract i ons and di vi si on when f i ndi ng part s
st rat egi es f or f i ndi ng f ract i onal part s
Reduce t he quant i t i es i n a reci pe.
common fractions and mixed numbers
know common equi val ent f ract i ons,
e.g. equi val ent t o a hal f , quart ers, t hi rds,
f i f t hs, t ent hs
underst and t hat i n uni t f ract i ons, t he l arger
t he denomi nat or, t he smal l er t he f ract i on,
but t hat t hi s i s not t rue of non-uni t f ract i ons
Example
Read f ract i ons used i n reci pes.
recognise equivalencies between
common fractions, percentages and
decimals (e.g. 50%
1
/2 , 0.25
1
/4)
and use these to find part of whole-
number quantities
know common f ract i on equi val ent s,
e.g. hal f , quart ers, f i f t hs, t ent hs
Recogni se 50% of f and hal f -pri ce as t he
same.
Know
1
/ 2 i s 0.5 when sol vi ng a probl em wi t h a
cal cul at or.
decimals up to three decimal places
know t hat t he deci mal poi nt separat es
whol e numbers f rom deci mal f ract i ons
know what each di gi t represent s, i ncl udi ng
t he use of zero as a pl ace hol der
Read and compare measurement s i n m and
mm.
multiply and divide decimals by 10, 100
and t o t wo-deci mal pl aces
Change t o pence, and vi ce versa.
Change m t o cm, and vi ce versa.
decimals up to two places
e.g. approxi mat e cal cul at i ons usi ng whol e
numbers
Mul t i pl y pri ces t o compl et e an order f orm.
Work out wages f rom an hourl y rat e.
Fractions, decimals and percentages N2/L1
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
1
2
3
4
5
6
Part B: N1.1, N1.2, N1.3
Number
39
Look at di f f erent st rat egi es usi ng

mul t i pl es of uni t f ract i ons (one part ),
combi nat i ons of uni t f ract i ons (hal f and
quart er). St art wi t h si mpl e whol e numbers
t o secure underst andi ng of met hods.
Change t he numbers of it ems by a f ract ion, e.g. adapt a plan f or a buf f et meal f or 20, scaled
down f or 15 people. Recognise t hat
15
/ 20
3
/ 4 and f ind
3
/ 4 of all t he amount s (numbers of
chicken legs, samosas, cakes, et c).
Sample activities
Use a f ract i on wal l t o compare t he si zes

of uni t f ract i ons, common f ract i ons.
Order a set of uni t f ract i ons.
Order a set of common uni t and non-uni t

f ract i ons, e.g. i ncl udi ng t hree-quart ers,
t wo-t hi rds.
Order a set of common f ract i ons and

mi xed numbers, e.g. hal ves, quart ers,
t ent hs i ncl udi ng mi xed numbers.
Wri t e deci mal s as f ract i ons out of 100. Wri t e percent ages as f ract i ons out of 100.
Wri t e f ract i ons as equi val ent ones out of 100.
Use a spreadsheet t o i nvest i gat e t he connect i on bet ween percent ages and deci mal f ract i ons.
Ent er common deci mal f ract i ons i n a col umn. Copy t he deci mal s i nt o t he next col umn and
f ormat t o percent , usi ng t he % but t on.
Use a cal cul at or t o i nvest i gat e f ract i ons as deci mal s.
Compl et e a t abl e of equi val ence gi ven a mi xt ure of f ract i ons, deci mal s and percent age val ues.
Mat ch advert s or newspaper cut t i ngs showi ng t he same amount , e.g. hal f -pri ce sal e, 50% of f !
Wri t e deci mal s numbers as f ract i ons, e.g. 2.45 2

45
/ 100.
Wri t e deci mal numbers as sums of f ract i ons 2.45 2

4
/ 10
5
/ 100.
Pract i se orderi ng deci mal s by f i l l i ng i n empt y deci mal pl aces.
In a spreadsheet ent er numbers t o one, t wo and t hree deci mal pl aces. Use t he Increase
deci mal but t on t o f ormat t he col umn t o t hree deci mal pl aces, and observe changes..
Read and order met ri c measurement s up t o t hree deci mal pl aces.
Use a cal cul at or or spreadsheet t o i nvest i gat e deci mal numbers and record t he resul t s. Deduce
rul es f rom t he pat t erns.
Pract i se convert i ng measurement s f rom one met ri c uni t t o anot her.
Pract i se usi ng numbers bonds t o add deci mal numbers, e.g. a col umn of hours worked wri t t en i n
whol e numbers and deci mal hal ves: 2, 1.5, 4.5, et c.
Pract i se cal cul at i ons wi t h money, met ri c measures, dat a.

Fraction wall
Use family walls, e.g. whole,
1
/2,
1
/4,
1
/8; whole,
1
/5,
1
/10, etc. to find
equivalent fractions.
ONEWHOLE
1
/
2
1
/
3
1
/
4
1
/
5
1
/
8
1
/
10
40
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
read, write, order and compare simple
percentages, and understand simple
percentage increase and decrease
understand percentage as the number of
parts in every 100
know that 100% is the whole
understand that a 10% pay increase is more
than a 5% pay increase, but the actual
increase depends on the number operated on
Underst and 20% of f i n a sal e.
Underst and a pri ce i ncrease of 10%.
find simple percentage parts of
quantities and measurements
underst and t hat t here are di f f erent ways of
cal cul at i ng percent ages
underst and t hat knowi ng a range of
met hods f or use wi t h di f f erent numbers can
make l i f e easi er t han a si ngl e met hod
appl i ed t o al l numbers (but t he choi ce
remai ns t he l earners)
Cal cul at e a down payment on goods gi ven i n
percent ages.
f i nd si mpl e percent age i ncrease and
decrease
underst and t hat a percent age i ncrease can
be f ound by f i ndi ng t he percent age part and
addi ng on
underst and t hat a percent age decrease can
be f ound by f i ndi ng t he percent age part and
subt ract i ng
10% ri se i n cost .
20% reduct i on i n a sal e.
use a calculator to calculate
know how t o change a f ract i on t o a deci mal
on a cal cul at or
underst and t hat percent ages can be
cal cul at ed i n di f f erent ways, one of whi ch i s
t o use t he f unct i on (%) key on a cal cul at or
know how t o i nt erpret a roundi ng error such
as 6.9999999 as 7
Adult s should be t aught t o:
approximate decimals by rounding to a
whole number or two decimal places
know what is meant by decimal places
Example
Round an answer on a cal cul at or t o t wo
deci mal pl aces.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
7
8
9
10
11
Part B: N1.1, N1.2, N1.3
Number
41
Di scuss per cent as t he number of pence i n t he .
Express percent age pay i ncreases as t he number of pence i n t he pound.
Wri t e percent ages as f ract i ons out of 100.
Di scuss t he meani ng of percent ages i n everyday mat eri al s, e.g. newspaper art i cl es, advert s, et c.
Invest i gat e t he ef f ect s of t he zoom f aci l i t y, expressed i n percent ages, on t he t ext di spl ay i n a
Word document .
Di scuss met hods f or f i ndi ng 10% and 1%,

e.g. 10p i n every , di vi de by 10; 1p i n every
, di vi de by 100. Pract i se f i ndi ng 10%.
Di scuss met hods f or f i ndi ng 50%, 25%,

75%, e.g. pence i n t he , di vi si on (and
mul t i pl i cat i on), hal vi ng and hal vi ng agai n
(and addi ng), et c.
Di scuss met hods f or 20%, e.g. di vi de by 5,

pence i n t he , f i nd 10% and doubl e.
Di scuss met hods f or 5%, e.g. pence i n t he ,

hal f of 10%.
Pract i se wi t h probl ems i n cont ext , e.g. di scount s, deposi t s.
Pract i se by appl yi ng percent age i ncrease t o si mpl e everyday exampl es, e.g. wage i ncrease,
i nt erest on savi ngs, cost of credi t .
Pract i se by appl yi ng percent age decrease t o si mpl e everyday exampl es, e.g. worki ng out sal e
pri ce.
Pract i se wri t i ng f ract i ons as di vi si on.
Use a cal cul at or t o change f ract i ons t o deci mal s usi ng f ract i ons as di vi si on.
Pract i se f ract i on probl ems usi ng a cal cul at or.
Check t he resul t s of cal cul at i ons done on a cal cul at or by di f f erent met hods, e.g. rough
est i mat es, re-i nput t he f i gures i n a di f f erent order, do i nverse cal cul at i ons.
Look at how t he % key works on di f f erent cal cul at ors. Compare t he use of t he % key wi t h l ong
met hods of percent age cal cul at i ons.
Look at const ant and memory f unct i ons on a cal cul at or. Di scuss t hei r uses.
Use a cal cul at or f or any of t he cal cul at i ons at t hi s l evel .
Use a cal cul at or t o check answers t o cal cul at i ons done by ot her met hods.
Mental strategies for finding percentages
To find 50%, find half
To find 25%, find half and half again
To find 75%, find half and half again, and add them together
To find 10%, divide by 10
To find 5%, find 10% and halve it
To find 20%, find 10% and double it

Sample activities
Pract i se approxi mat i ng by roundi ng l engt hs, wei ght s, measures of capaci t y and money t o t wo
deci mal pl aces or whol e numbers.
Round answers on a cal cul at or t o t wo deci mal pl aces, t o a whol e number.
Use t he Decrease deci mal but t on on a spreadsheet t o expl ore roundi ng deci mal s t o whol e
numbers or t wo deci mal pl aces.
42
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
positive and negative numbers of any
size in a practical context
know what each di gi t i n a number
represent s, i ncl udi ng t he use of zero as a
pl ace hol der
underst and t he meani ng of negat i ve
numbers i n a pract i cal cont ext , e.g.
t emperat ure bel ow zero, l oss i n t radi ng
Example
Underst and and compare government
spendi ng f i gures on publ i c servi ces.
carry out calculations with numbers
of any size using efficient methods
underst and t he words mul t i pl e and f act or
and rel at e t hem t o mul t i pl i cat i on and
di vi si on f act s
underst and t he word pri me and know pri me
numbers up t o 20
know and use st rat egi es t o check answers,
e.g. approxi mat e cal cul at i ons, est i mat i on
Use ment al and wri t t en met hods of
cal cul at i on t o generat e resul t s when sol vi ng
probl ems usi ng whol e numbers of any si ze.
calculate ratio and direct proportion
underst and rat i o wri t t en i n t he f orm 3:2
underst and how t o work out t he number of
part s i n a gi ven rat i o, and t he val ue of one
part
Compare t he pri ce of product s of di f f erent
wei ght s or capaci t i es.
evaluate expressions and make
substitutions in given formulae in
words and symbols to produce results
underst and t hat words and symbol s i n
expressi ons and f ormul ae represent
vari abl e quant i t i es (numbers), not t hi ngs
(i .e. 2a 2b cannotbe expl ai ned as 2
appl es and 2 bananas)
underst and t hat t he cont ent s of bracket s
must be worked out f i rst
underst and t hat , when t here i s no operat or
bet ween a number and a vari abl e, or t wo
vari abl es, mul t i pl i cat i on i s i mpl i ed,
e.g. 2a 2 a; ab a b; 2ab 2 a b
underst and t hat , when t here i s no operat or
bet ween a number and a bracket ,
mul t i pl i cat i on i s i mpl i ed,
e.g. 2 (a b) 2 (a b)
Cal cul at e t he cooki ng t i me f rom a gi ven
f ormul a.
Cal cul at e areas and vol umes f rom gi ven
f ormul ae.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
mat hemat i cal i nf ormat i on used
f or di f f erent purposes and
i ndependent l y sel ect and compare
rel evant i nf ormat i on f rom a
vari et y of graphi cal , numeri cal
i ncrease underst andi ng and sel ect
appropri at e met hods f or carryi ng
t hrough a subst ant i al act i vi t y
generate results
t o an appropri at e l evel of
accuracy usi ng met hods,
measures and checki ng
cl earl y and accurat el y usi ng
numeri cal , graphi cal and wri t t en
f ormat s appropri at e t o purpose,
f i ndi ngs and audi ence
Whole numbers N1/L2
1
2
3
4
Part B: N2.1, N2.2, N2.3
Number
43
Sample activities
Use l arge numbers t o di scuss pl ace val ue, e.g. popul at i on f i gures, at t endance at event s, Lot t ery
wi ns, f oot bal l t ransf er f ees, company val uat i ons, et c.
Di scuss t he meani ng of negat i ve numbers i n pract i cal cont ext s, e.g. nat i onal debt , t hi rd worl d
debt , company l osses, et c.
Order t he t emperat ures of di f f erent pl aces on a gi ven day (f rom a newspaper, web si t e, et c.).
Order a set of mont hl y t radi ng f i gures f or a year, i ncl udi ng l osses.
Di scuss di f f erent met hods t hat can be used f or ment al and wri t t en cal cul at i ons and share short
cut s and t ri cks , wi t h expl anat i ons, e.g. break down numbers i nt o f act ors.
Use a number square and cross of f mul t i pl es of numbers i n t urn t o f i nd pri me numbers (si eve of
Erat ost henes).
Pract i se breaki ng down numbers i nt o pri me f act ors.
Compare t he answers t o di f f erent t ypes of cal cul at i on and use t hi s knowl edge t o check t he
val i di t y of t he answers.
Est i mat e answers t o cal cul at i ons when sol vi ng probl ems wi t h whol e numbers.
Di scuss rat i o i n everyday si t uat i ons, e.g. i n basi c reci pes such as past ry, di l ut i ons as i n squash,
mi xt ures f or concret e, pot t i ng compost s.
Use di rect proport i on i n everyday si t uat i ons such as scal i ng reci pes, exchangi ng pounds t o
f orei gn currency.
Cal cul at e wi nni ngs f rom bet t i ng odds.
Scal e quant i t i es up (or down), usi ng di rect proport i on, e.g. i n cooki ng reci pes, cement mi xes, et c.
Cal cul at e act ual measurement s f rom a scal e drawi ng.
Mat ch expressi ons i n words and symbol s.
Convert expressi ons f rom words t o symbol s, and vi ce versa.
Eval uat e si mpl e expressi ons usi ng a si ngl e vari abl e, t wo vari abl es, et c.
Eval uat e si mpl e f ormul ae usi ng bracket s, e.g. peri met er 2 (l w).
Use f ormul ae f or area and vol ume.
Use f ormul ae f or cal cul at i ng mi l es per gal l on, speed, et c.
Use si mpl e f ormul ae i n spreadsheet s.
Di scuss si mpl e everyday f ormul ae such as t hose f or cooki ng j oi nt s of meat , maki ng curt ai ns,
changi ng t emperat ure f rom Fahrenhei t t o Cel si us, changi ng bet ween met ri c and i mperi al uni t s.
44
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
use fractions to order and compare
amounts or quantities
know how t o change f ract i ons t o equi val ent
f ract i ons wi t h a common denomi nat or
Example
Compare overt i me rat es.
identify equivalencies between
underst and t hat f ract i ons, deci mal s and
percent ages are di f f erent ways of
expressi ng t he same t hi ng
know t hat percent ages are f ract i ons out
of 100
know t hat deci mal f ract i ons are expressed
i n t ent hs, hundredt hs, t housandt hs
Wri t e f ract i ons of an hour as deci mal s on a
t i me sheet , e.g.
3
/ 4 hour as 0.75.
evaluate one number as a fraction of
another
underst and equi val ent f ract i ons
underst and si mpl est f orm
know how t o reduce a f ract i on t o i t s
si mpl est f orm, e.g. by recogni si ng
equi val ent f ract i ons, by usi ng f act ors t o
cancel
recogni se pri me numbers (i .e. numbers
t hat cant be cancel l ed)
underst and t hat quant i t i es must be i n t he
same uni t s t o eval uat e one as a f ract i on
of anot her
Change mi nut es i nt o f ract i ons of an hour t o
f i l l i n a t i me sheet .
Represent t he out come of observat i ons as a
f ract i on.
use fractions to add and subtract
amounts or quantities
know some common addi t i on and
subt ract i on f act s, e.g.
1
/ 2
1
/ 4
3
/ 4;
3
/ 4
1
/ 2
1
/ 4
underst and how t o change f ract i ons t o
equi val ent f ract i ons f or t he purpose of
addi ng and subt ract i ng
Note Beware of t eachi ng rout i nes whi ch
l earners at t empt t o copy but dont underst and.
Add hours on a t i me sheet t hat i ncl udes
f ract i ons.
order, approximate and compare
decimals when solving practical
problems
and up t o t hree deci mal pl aces
underst and t hat deci mal s can be rounded
t o di f f erent degrees of accuracy, dependi ng
on t he purpose
Compare currency exchange rat es.
Round deci mal s t o make approxi mat e
cal cul at i ons.
Round answers on a cal cul at or t o t he
appropri at e degree of accuracy.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
1
2
3
4
5
Part B: N2.1, N2.2, N2.3
Number
45
Sample activities
Di scuss ways of compari ng pai rs of f ract i ons.
Order f ract i ons wi t h t he same denomi nat ors.
Order f ract i ons wi t h di f f erent denomi nat ors.
Order a set of common f ract i ons and mi xed numbers.
Mat ch f ract i ons, deci mal s and percent ages.
Order a mi x of f ract i ons, deci mal s, percent ages.
Re-wri t e advert s or headl i nes t hat cont ai n f ract i ons or percent ages usi ng an equi val ent f orm.
Convert f ract i ons t o deci mal s t o ent er t hem i n a cal cul at or.
Use a spreadsheet t o invest igat e t he connect ion bet ween percent ages, decimal f ract ions and
common f ract ions. Ent er decimal f ract ions in a column and copy t o t he next t wo columns. Format
one column t o percent ages and one t o f ract ions (see Excel Help on f ormat t ing t o f ract ions).
Use exampl es t o di scuss st rat egi es f or est i mat i ng one number as a f ract i on of anot her,
e.g. roundi ng one or bot h numbers up or down usi ng t hei r knowl edge of hal ves, doubl es,
mul t i pl es.
Di scuss f ract i ons usi ng t he at t ri but es of t he group, e.g. what f ract i on of t he group i s f emal e,
t ravel l ed by bus t o t he cent re, et c.
Use col l ect ed dat a (e.g. surveys) and descri be some of t he resul t s usi ng f ract i ons.
Eval uat e quant i t i es as f ract i ons, e.g. 250 g as a f ract i on of a ki l o.
Use f ract i ons of shapes t o i l l ust rat e addi t i on and subt ract i on, by exchangi ng f ract i ons f or
equi val ent ones, e.g. a rect angl e cut i nt o hal ves and quart ers, swap a hal f f or t wo quart ers.
Pract i se generat i ng mul t i pl e pat t erns f rom di f f erent st art i ng f ract i ons, e.g.
1
/ 3,
2
/ 6,
3
/ 9,
4
/ 12,
5
/ 15;
1
/ 4,
2
/ 8,
3
/ 12,
4
/ 16. Il l ust rat e t he equi val ence usi ng a f ract i on wal l .
Ident i f y f ract i ons wi t h t he same denomi nat or (bot t om number) i n mul t i pl e l i st s of pai rs of
f ract i ons.
Pract i se addi ng and subt ract i ng si mpl e f ract i ons.
Order deci mal l engt hs, wei ght s, capaci t i es.
Compare t i mes f rom spri nt races t hat are recorded i n seconds t o t hree deci mal pl aces.
Di scuss roundi ng answers on a cal cul at or and t he degree of accuracy t hat mi ght be appropri at e,
e.g. cal cul at i ons wi t h money, preci se measurement s.
Use t he Decrease deci mal but t on on a spreadsheet t o expl ore roundi ng deci mal s t o di f f erent
degrees of accuracy. Compare resul t s wi t h t hose obt ai ned usi ng t he ROUND f unct i on.
46
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
decimals up to three places
know and use st rat egi es t o check answers,
e.g. approxi mat e cal cul at i ons usi ng whol e
numbers
Example
Convert sums of money bet ween currenci es.
order and compare percentages and
understand percentage increase and
decrease
find percentage parts of quantities
and measurements
underst and t hat percent ages can be
worked out i n di f f erent ways
know how t o work out VAT
underst and t hat t he rat e of VAT i s set by
government and i s subj ect t o change
Cal cul at e t he t ot al cost of an i t em where t he
pri ce i s gi ven excl udi ng VAT, e.g. di rect sal es
vi a t el ephone or t he Int ernet .
Use i nt erest rat es t o compare t he cost of a
l oan wi t h credi t f aci l i t i es.
evaluate one number as a percentage
of another
underst and t hat t hi s may requi re changi ng
a f ract i on t o a percent age, and t hat i t can
be done i n di f f erent ways
Represent t he out come of observat i ons as a
percent age.
use a calculator to calculate
underst and t he use of memory and
const ant f unct i ons
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
6
7
8
9
10
Part B: N2.1, N2.2, N2.3
Number
47
Sample activities
Di scuss di f f erent met hods t hat can be used f or ment al and wri t t en cal cul at i ons and share
short cut s and t ri cks , wi t h expl anat i ons.
Cal cul at e areas and vol umes usi ng t o t hree deci mal pl aces.
Convert bet ween di f f erent currenci es t o compare pri ces, e.g. work out hol i day spendi ng, et c.
Est i mat e answers t o cal cul at i ons when sol vi ng probl ems wi t h deci mal s.
Search f or goods on Ameri can onl i ne shoppi ng si t es and convert t he pri ces t o st erl i ng.
Di scuss qui ck ways of f i ndi ng di f f erent percent ages, e.g. 10%, 5%, 20%, 25%.
Di scuss qui ck ways of f i ndi ng 17

1
/ 2%. (Fi nd 10%, hal ve t o gi ve 5%, hal ve agai n t o gi ve 2
1
/ 2%
and add t o get 17
1
/ 2%.)
Di scuss how i ncreasi ng a quant i t y by a percent age i s 100 %, e.g. i ncreasi ng a pri ce of 36
by 20% can be f ound by f i ndi ng 120% of 36.
Di scuss how decreasi ng a quant i t y by a percent age can be f ound by cal cul at i ng
100 %, e.g. reduci ng a pri ce by 20% can be achi eved by f i ndi ng 80% of t he pri ce.
Pract i se exampl es i n cont ext , e.g. percent age pay ri ses, i ncreased or decreased mort gage
payment s when t here i s a change i n i nt erest rat es, t he ef f ect of a percent age i ncrease i n t he
cost of f uel , et c. (househol d bi l l s), addi ng VAT t o a car servi ce or mai l order i t em (e.g.
comput er), addi ng 30% t o pri ces as a prof i t margi n i n a shop. Use any met hods.
Di scuss ment al , wri t t en and cal cul at or met hods.
Di scuss percent ages usi ng t he at t ri but es of t he group, e.g. what percent age of t he group i s
mal e, t ravel l ed by bus t o t he cent re, et c.
Use col l ect ed dat a (e.g. surveys) and descri be some resul t s usi ng percent ages; approxi mat e i f
necessary.
Ent er gi ven pai rs of numbers i n col umn A and col umn B of a spreadsheet . Ment al l y eval uat e
t he number i n A as a percent age of t he number i n B and ent er i n col umn C. Ent er a f ormul a i n
col umn D t o check t he resul t s.
Use al l t he cal cul at or f unct i ons f or , ,

, and % ef f i ci ent l y and correct l y.
Make use of t he memory f or si mpl e t wo-

st age cal cul at i ons.
Ent er numbers i n t he correct order f or

expressi ons t hat i ncl ude bracket s.
Use a cal cul at or f or any of t he

cal cul at i ons at t hi s l evel .
Use a cal cul at or t o check t he answers t o

cal cul at i ons done by ot her met hods
(manual or by anot her person).
Calculators and rounding
When doing a calculation with several stages, learners can be
tempted to round up or down half-way through, especially if the
calculator comes up with numbers like 456.893021, and the learner
is recording them. They need to understand that, if they round too
early, theyre throwing away accuracy, because the inaccuracies are
compounded at each stage. The solution is to learn to use the
memory button.
48
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
recognise and select coins and notes
know t he names and val ue of coi ns and
not es
Example
Choose t he correct coi ns t o use i n a publ i c
t el ephone.
relate familiar events to: times of the
day; days of the week; seasons of the
year
underst and and use vocabul ary rel at ed t o
t he t i me of day, e.g. o cl ock, mi dday,
morni ng, af t ernoon
underst and t hat t i mes are repeat ed i n t he
12-hour cl ock, and need t o be qual i f i ed by
morni ng or af t ernoon i f t he cont ext i s not
obvi ous
know t he days of t he week and t hei r order
know t he seasons of t he year and t hei r
order
Underst and t he day and t i me of cl ass/ t rai ni ng
sessi ons.
Underst and t ermi nol ogy such as spri ng t erm,
summer t erm i n t he cont ext of t he course or
t hei r chi l drens school i ng.
describe size and use direct
comparisons for the size of at least
two items
si ze, e.g. l arge, smal l , l arger, smal l er,
smal l est
Ask f or i t ems by comparat i ve si ze,
e.g. l arger/ smal l er.
Use j udgement of si ze when packi ng or
st ori ng t hi ngs.
describe length, width, height, and
use direct comparisons for length,
width and height of items
l engt h, wi dt h and hei ght , e.g. l ong, short ,
wi de, narrow, t al l ; l onger, t oo l ong, l ongest
Judge t hat a screw i s t oo short and sel ect a
l onger one, e.g. when put t i ng up a shel f .
Check a chi l ds hei ght agai nst t he mi ni mum
measure f or a f ai rground ri de.
describe weight and use direct
comparisons for the weight of items
underst and and use vocabulary relat ed t o
weight , e.g. heavy, light , heavier, light er,
heaviest
underst and t hat weight is independent of
size
Sel ect t he l i ght er of t wo i t ems, e.g. a
sui t case.
describe capacity and use direct
comparisons for the capacity of items
capaci t y, e.g. f ul l , empt y, hol ds more t han,
hol ds l ess t han
underst and t hat capaci t y i s a measure of
vol ume (not j ust how t al l or how wi de) and
t hat shapes of cont ai ners can be decept i ve,
e.g. broad based and narrow t op
Choose a cont ai ner t o f i l l an urn wi t h wat er.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
Common measures MSS1/E1
1
2
3
4
5
6
49
Sample activities
Use coi ns and not es i n quest i onanswer sessi ons, e.g. Gi ve me a 10p, Have you got a f i ve-
pound not e?, et c.
Sel ect f rom coi ns t o mat ch requi rement s i n pract i cal si t uat i ons, e.g. 1 coi n f or a t rol l ey, coi ns
f or a parki ng met er, vendi ng machi ne, et c.
In a group, di scuss t hei r dai l y act i vi t i es and t hei r rel at ed t i mes, e.g. f avouri t e TV programmes,
cl ass t i mes, get t i ng up, goi ng t o bed, meal t i mes.
Fi l l i n event s on a si mpl e day pl an marked i n hours.
Use t he vocabul ary of t he di f f erent days of t he week, weekday and weekend t o di scuss
f ami l i ar event s.
Mark event s on a pl anner f or one week.
Use TV l i st i ngs t o f i nd out what days di f f erent programmes are on.
Di scuss t he seasons i n rel at i on t o event s such as New Year, rel i gi ous f est i val s, publ i c hol i days,
educat i on t erms, et c.
Di scuss si ze i n rel at i on t o f ami l i ar obj ect s, or obj ect s i n t he room. Gi ve st at ement s t o descri be
and compare si ze.
Sort si mi l ar obj ect s i n order of si ze.
Compare t he l engt h, wi dt h, hei ght of di f f erent obj ect s.
Di scuss t he si ze of t he room, usi ng t he words l engt h, l ong, wi dt h, wi de, hei ght , hi gh.
Compare t he l engt h of obj ect s wi t h a met re rul e and deci de i f t hey are l onger, short er or t he
same l engt h (l earners do not have t o measure at t hi s l evel , but t hi s i s a usef ul preparat ory
act i vi t y).
Compare t he wei ght of t wo di f f erent si zes of t he same product , t o deci de whi ch i s heavi er,
l i ght er, e.g. l arge and smal l bags of sugar/ ri ce, et c.
Compare t he wei ght s of t wo obj ect s of di f f erent si zes t o deci de whi ch i s heavi er/ l i ght er.
Compare obj ect s of t he same si ze but wi t h di f f erent wei ght s. Deci de whi ch i s t he
heavi est / l i ght est , et c. Put t hem i n order by wei ght .
Di scuss capaci t y, l ooki ng at common cont ai ners f or l i qui ds and sol i ds, e.g. cart ons, bot t l es,
cans, j ars, et c.
Look at cont ai ners of di f f erent shapes whi ch hol d t he same amount check by pouri ng l i qui ds
f rom one t o t he ot her.
Measures, shape
and space
50
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
recognise and name common 2-D and
3-D shapes
know t he names of common 2-D shapes,
e.g. rect angl e, square, ci rcl e
know t he names of common 3-D shapes,
e.g. cube
underst and t hat shape i s i ndependent of
si ze
ori ent at i on (i .e. shape i s not f i xed i n space)
and recogni se shapes i n di f f erent
ori ent at i ons
underst and t he di f f erence bet ween 2-D
(e.g. f l at ) and 3-D (e.g. sol i d, or a cont ai ner)
shapes
Example
Recogni se t he shape of t raf f i c si gns and
underst and t hat t he shape has a meani ng.
understand everyday positional
vocabulary (e.g. between, inside or
near to)
Fol l ow di rect i ons t hat i ncl ude posi t i onal
vocabul ary.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
Shape and space MSS2/E1
1
2
51
Sample activities
Ident i f y a rect angl e, square and ci rcl e
f rom a range of 2-D shapes.
Cl assi f y obj ect s by shape.
Fi nd shapes i n curt ai n or wal l paper
desi gns, cl ot hes, pai nt i ngs, phot ographs
or exampl es f rom nat ure.
Compare t he shape of f aces of cubes and
cuboi ds of di f f erent si zes. What i s
speci al about a cube?
Ident i f y a cube f rom a col l ect i on of
obj ect s.
Experi ment wi t h drawi ng common
shapes (e.g. di f f erent -si zed rect angl es) i n
a si mpl e graphi cs package such as Pai nt .
Fol l ow spoken or wri t t en i nst ruct i ons or
di rect i ons i nvol vi ng posi t i onal vocabul ary,
e.g. di rect i ons t o t he cant een, where t o
f i nd equi pment , et c. Note Thi s act i vi t y
l i nks t o speaki ng and l i st eni ng. See t he
l i t eracy curri cul um.
There are many sources of material that can be used to practise
recognition of simple shapes. However, some learners may prefer
practical activities. Drawing simple patterns like this one provides an
opportunity to develop skills in using a compass, and can lay the
foundations for understanding properties of shapes at higher levels.
Alternatively, learners could use simple computer graphics programs
to explore shapes and acquire some basic IT skills.
Compasspatterns
Measures, shape
and space
52
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
make amounts of money up to 1 in
different ways using 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p,
20p and 50p coins
Example
Pay t he correct f are on a bus.
Count out t he exact amount when payi ng f or
somet hi ng, e.g. a newspaper.
calculate the cost of more than one item
and the change froma transaction, in
pence or in whole pounds
understand that the same strategies used with
numbers can be applied in practical situations
using money
Cal cul at e t he cost of t wo f i rst -cl ass st amps
and t he change f rom 1.
Cal cul at e t he cost of t wo ci nema t i cket s and
t he change f rom 20.
read and record time in common date
formats
know the months of the year in words and
abbreviated forms
know the months of the year in their
numbered sequence, e.g. March is the third
month
understand the UK convention of writing the
date in order of day, month, year
Underst and t he use by dat e on f ood l abel s.
Wri t e t hei r dat e of bi rt h on a f orm.
read and understand time displayed on
analogue and 12-hour digital clocks in
hours, half hours and quarter hours
underst and t hat analogue clock f aces can be
marked in dif f erent ways, e.g. Arabic or
Roman numerals, dot s, lines
underst and quart er past , half past , quart er
t o and know t he corresponding posit ion of
t he hands on t he clock f ace
underst and t hat t he digit al clock shows
hours and minut es and know t hat :15 on a
digit al clock is quart er past , :30 is half past ,
:45 is quart er t o
Set an al arm cl ock.
Tel l t he t i me on an anal ogue cl ock and on a
di gi t al cl ock (wi t hi n t he l i mi t s of t hi s l evel ).
read, estimate, measure and compare
length using common standard and
non-standard units (e.g. metre,
centimetre, paces)
underst and t hat non-st andard uni t s are not
agreed measures and can t heref ore vary
underst and t hat st andard measures are f i xed
know t hat met res and cent i met res are
met ri c uni t s of l engt h, and have an i dea of
t hei r si ze rel at i ve t o f ami l i ar t hi ngs
recogni se and wri t e met re and cent i met re i n
f ul l and abbrevi at ed t o m, cm
know t hat 1 m = 100 cm
underst and m and cm di vi si ons on si mpl e
scal es
know how t o use a rul er t o draw and
measure l i nes t o t he nearest cent i met re
Underst and measurement s on l abel s on
cl ot hes.
Measure a room t o t he nearest met re.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
i nf ormat i on
generate results
1
2
3
4
5
53
Sample activities
Exchange coi ns f or t hei r equi val ent val ue usi ng a number of smal l er coi ns (up t o 1).
Fi nd t he t ot al of a sel ect i on of mi xed coi ns.
Pay f or t hi ngs by addi ng on coi ns.
Make up di f f erent gi ven amount s usi ng a sel ect i on of coi ns.
Use everyday si t uat i ons t o cal cul at e t ot al s and change f rom di f f erent amount s, e.g. t wo i t ems
f rom t he cant een, t wo bus f ares, et c. Encourage a range of ment al st rat egi es (see addi t i on,
subt ract i on, mul t i pl i cat i on).
Compare t odays dat e wri t t en i n di f f erent medi a publ i cat i ons, e.g. newspapers, t el et ext .
Mat ch t he mont hs i n words t o t hei r abbrevi at i ons.
Wri t e key personal dat es, e.g. t hei r dat e of bi rt h, t he dat es of bi rt h of f ami l y members.
Mat ch dat es wri t t en i n di f f erent f ormat s, e.g. 6/ 3/ 00, 6 March 2000, 6 Mar 00, 06/ 03/ 00.
Compare and di scuss di f f erent ways of wri t i ng sel l by and use by dat es on f ood l abel s or
pharmaceut i cal product s.
Sel ect Insert : Dat e and Ti me on Word and compare t he di f f erent ways of wri t i ng t odays dat e.
Read t he t i me on di f f erent anal ogue cl ock f aces, usi ng o cl ock, hal f past , quart er t o and
quart er past .
Read t he t i me on di f f erent 12-hour di gi t al cl ocks, usi ng t he vocabul ary of o cl ock, f i f t een, t hi rt y,
and f ort y-f i ve.
Mat ch t i mes i n words t o cl ocks wi t h di f f erent f aces.
Measure t he l engt h and wi dt h of t he room i n paces. Record and compare resul t s, and di scuss
t he need f or st andard measures.
Use a 1-met re rul e, marked i n cent i met res t o show t hat 100 cm i s equi val ent t o 1 m.
In a group, di scuss t he best uni t (m, cm) f or measuri ng vari ous i t ems, e.g. f urni t ure, doors,
wi ndows. Mat ch a l i st of i t ems t o t he best uni t .
Measure i t ems above t o t he nearest m, cm, 10 cm, as appropri at e.
Est i mat e and t hen use a rul er t o measure t o t he nearest cm l i nes drawn on pl ai n paper.
In Word, make sure t hat t he graphi cs (or drawi ng) t ool bar i s di spl ayed. In Draw: Gri d sel ect
t he f ol l owi ng set t i ngs: Snap obj ect s t o gri d change hori zont al and vert i cal set t i ngs t o 1 cm;
Di spl ay gri dl i nes on screen , vert i cal and hori zont al every 1 cm. Learners can now use t he
gri dl i nes t o experi ment wi t h drawi ng l i nes of di f f erent l engt hs. Al t ernat i vel y, l oad a f i l e of
drawn l i nes f or l earners t o measure usi ng t he gri d.
Measures, shape
and space
54
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
weight using common standard units
(e.g. kilogram)
know t hat a ki l ogram i s a met ri c uni t of
wei ght and have an i dea of t he wei ght
rel at i ve t o f ami l i ar quant i t i es, e.g. i t ems of
f ood
recogni se and wri t e ki l ogram i n f ul l and
abbrevi at ed t o ki l o and kg
underst and ki l ogram di vi si ons on a si mpl e
scal e
Example
Wei gh t hemsel ves t o t he nearest ki l o.
capacity using common standard and
non-standard units (e.g. litre, cupful)
underst and t hat non-st andard uni t s are not
agreed measures and can t heref ore vary
underst and t hat st andard measures are
f i xed
know t hat a l i t re i s a met ri c uni t , and have
an i dea of t he amount rel at i ve t o f ami l i ar
quant i t i es (e.g. such as cart ons or bot t l es of
mi l k and ot her dri nks) and t o non-st andard
measures, e.g. more t han a cup
recogni se and wri t e l i t re i n f ul l and
abbrevi at ed t o l
underst and l i t re di vi si ons on a si mpl e scal e
Use non-st andard measures i n cooki ng
(e.g. t abl espoonf ul or cupf ul ).
Read t he capaci t y of pai nt t i ns t o buy a
requi red amount .
read and compare positive
temperatures in everyday situations
such as weather charts
underst and t hat t emperat ure i s a measure
of heat (or col d)
underst and t hat weat her t emperat ure i s
measured i n degrees Cel si us i n t he UK (but
t hat di f f erent scal es exi st )
Deci de what t o wear f rom t he t emperat ure
gi ven on t he weat her f orecast .
read simple scales to the nearest
labelled division
underst and t hat scal es measure i n di f f erent
uni t s
underst and l abel l ed di vi si ons on di f f erent
scal es
Read a speedomet er t o t he nearest 10 mph.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
i nf ormat i on
generate results
6
7
8
9
55
Sample activities
Use a ki l ogram wei ght (e.g. bag of sugar) t o compare ot her wei ght s. Use compari sons such as
more t han a ki l ogram, l ess t han a ki l ogram, about t wi ce as much, et c.
Use a si mpl e bal ance t o wei gh obj ect s usi ng ki l ogram wei ght s.
Est i mat e t he wei ght s of di f f erent obj ect s or i t ems (e.g. packaged f oods, washi ng powder) t o
t he nearest ki l o, and check by measuri ng or readi ng t he l abel .
Est i mat e t he number of gl asses of wat er t o f i l l a l i t re j ug or bot t l e and check by measuri ng.
Compare di f f erent -shaped cont ai ners t hat hol d a l i t re, i ncl udi ng a 10 cm cube.
Use di f f erent -si zed dri nks bot t l es and cans wi t h t he l abel s covered t o j udge capaci t i es f rom
1
/ 2 l i t re t o 5 l i t res. Record t he resul t s and check by measuri ng, or agai nst t he l abel .
Look at weat her chart s i n t he newspaper, on web si t es, and di scuss t he t emperat ure, e.g. hot ,
warm, cool , et c.
Compare t he t emperat ures i n di f f erent pl aces on weat her chart s, e.g. London i s warmer t han
Edi nburgh, et c.
Compare t emperat ures i n degrees Cel si us at di f f erent dest i nat i ons f rom hol i day brochures.
Use di agrams of si mpl e scal es t o be read t o t he nearest l abel l ed di vi si on (i dent i f y what scal es
l earners are f ami l i ar wi t h t hrough work or l ei sure act i vi t i es).
Make sure t hat t he Rul er i s di spl ayed i n Word ( Vi ew: Rul er ), and t hat measurement s are set
t o cm ( Tool s: Opt i ons (or Pref erences), General ). Show l earners how t o ent er di f f erent Top,
Bot t om, Lef t and Ri ght margi ns i n Fi l e: Page Set up . Observe ef f ect s on t ext l ayout and l ook at
measurement s on rul er.
Measures, shape
and space
56
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
describe the properties of common
2-D and 3-D shapes
descri be t he propert i es of common 2-D
shapes, such as t he number of si des and
corners
descri be t he propert i es of common 3-D
shapes, such as t he shape of f aces, and t he
number of f aces, edges and corners
Descri be di f f erent t i l es i n t erms of t hei r
propert i es.
Descri be di f f erent cont ai ners i n t erms of t hei r
propert i es.
use positional vocabulary
underst and and use posi t i onal vocabul ary,
e.g. on t he l ef t , on t he ri ght , above, bel ow,
behi nd, et c.
Gi ve di rect i ons usi ng posi t i onal vocabul ary.
recognise and name 2-D and 3-D
shapes
know t he names of 2-D shapes,
e.g. rect angl e, square, ci rcl e, t ri angl e
know t he names of 3-D shapes,
e.g. pyrami d, cyl i nder
si ze and ori ent at i on
Example
Underst and ref erences t o t he shape of si gns
i n t he Hi ghway Code.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
i nf ormat i on
generate results
1
2
3
57
Compl et e a t abl e f or common 2-D shapes f or t he number of si des and t he number of corners.
Compare resul t s. Di scuss t he resul t s f or a ci rcl e.
Compl et e a t abl e f or common 3-D shapes f or t he numbers of f aces, edges, corners. Compare
resul t s. Di scuss t he resul t s f or a cyl i nder.
Descri be t he shape of f aces of common 3-D shapes.
Use si mpl e (l ocal ) st reet pl ans t o pract i se gi vi ng and f ol l owi ng di rect i ons.
Look at a web si t e such as st reet map.co.uk, and ent er your own post code t o f i nd a l ocal map.
Descri be where you l i ve i n rel at i on t o a mai n road or a l andmark such as a school , st at i on,
hospi t al , park. If t he l ocat i on has an aeri al phot ograph, poi nt out l andmarks t hat you can
i dent i f y.
Sample activities
Ident i f y everyday i t ems by shape.
Mat ch names t o shapes, and i dent i f y whet her t hey are 2-D or 3-D.
Fi nd shapes i n curt ai n or wal l paper desi gns, cl ot hes, pai nt i ngs, phot ographs, bui l di ngs or
exampl es f rom nat ure.
Experi ment wi t h drawi ng common shapes i n a si mpl e graphi cs package such as Pai nt .
Highway Codesigns
The shape of road signs
in the highway code
conveys meaning. A
triangle indicates a
warning, a circle
indicates an instruction,
and a rectangle
indicates information.
Warning signs
Signs giving orders
Information signs
Measures, shape
and space
58
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
add and subtract sums of money
using decimal notation
know how t o al i gn deci mal poi nt s and
f i gures i n col umn addi t i on and subt ract i on
know how t o ent er sums of money i n a
cal cul at or
Example
Fi nd t he t ot al cost of i t ems.
Check a t i l l recei pt .
Check a bank st at ement .
Check deduct i ons on a pay sl i p.
round sums of money to the nearest
and 10p and make approximate
calculations
recogni se when t o round up t o t he nearest
, e.g. 1.99 i s approxi mat el y 2
Use approxi mat e cal cul at i ons t o est i mat e t he
cost of shoppi ng.
read, measure and record time
underst and and use a.m. and p.m.
underst and and use common dat e f ormat s
know how t o use a cal endar
read anal ogue and 12-hour di gi t al cl ocks t o
t he nearest f i ve mi nut es
Underst and programme t i mes i n l i st i ngs,
e.g. f or t el evi si on, radi o, ci nema.
Ent er an appoi nt ment on a cal endar.
read and interpret distance in
everyday situations
know t he uni t s used f or measuri ng l onger
di st ances, e.g. ki l omet res, mi l es
have an i dea of di st ance i n mi l es,
e.g. know what i s i n wal ki ng di st ance when
f ol l owi ng di rect i ons
Underst and a di st ance on a road si gn when
t ravel l i ng by car or bus.
length using non-standard and
standard units*
read scal es t o t he nearest l abel l ed or
unl abel l ed di vi si on
know t hat 10 mm = 1 cm; 1000 mm = 1 m
Measure a wi ndow f or a curt ai n or a bl i nd.
Check dept h marki ngs at a swi mmi ng pool .
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
i nf ormat i on
generate results
* As i mperi al uni t s are phased out ,
underst andi ng of i mperi al uni t s
shoul d be devel oped accordi ng t o
need.
1
2
3
4
5
59
Sample activities
Ent er sums of money i nt o a col umn i n a spreadsheet and f ormat t o currency (make sure t he
sof t ware i s set t o UK), and see how t he f i gures are al i gned.
Wri t e sums of money i n col umns f or addi t i on.
Pract i se addi t i on and subt ract i on usi ng shoppi ng recei pt s, househol d bi l l s, pri ce l i st s, orders
f or work, pay sl i ps, et c.
Cost a smal l j ob of work, or work out a budget f or t he weeks spendi ng, usi ng a cal cul at or or
spreadsheet .
Check bank st at ement s, usi ng pref erred met hod.
Look at pri ce l i st s, et c. and di scuss why so many pri ces end i n 95p or 99p. Wri t e t he pri ces t o
t he nearest .
Access an onl i ne shoppi ng si t e, and deci de what i t ems you woul d l i ke t o buy. Round pri ces t o
t he nearest and est i mat e t he t ot al cost .
Use roundi ng t o work out t he approxi mat e cost of i t ems i n a shoppi ng basket .
Use a st andard cal endar t o f i nd di f f erent days or dat es, e.g. What i s t he dat e of t he f i rst
Sat urday i n June? What day i s May Day t hi s year? et c.
Set anal ogue and di gi t al cl ocks t o vari ous t i mes.
Mat ch t he t i mes on i l l ust rat i ons of anal ogue and di gi t al cl ocks.
Mat ch t i mes i n words t o cl ock f aces.
Look at t he dat e and t i me set t i ngs on t he comput er.
Di scuss t he di st ance f rom home t o work or home t o t he t rai ni ng cent re, et c. Di scuss how l ong
di st ance i s measured, e.g. ref erence t o si gnpost s i n t he UK (mi l es), and si gnpost s i n ot her
count ri es (ki l omet res).
Di scuss how f ar t hey wal k t o t he shops, work, bus st op, et c. and how l ong i t t akes. How f ar
woul d t hey wal k i n 15 mi nut es or hal f an hour? When woul d t hey wal k or cycl e or cat ch a bus?
Provi de di st ances i n mi l es f rom where you are t o nearby pl aces, e.g. t owns and ci t i es i n t he
UK. Rank t hem i n order of di st ance f rom t he l ocal cent re.
Suggest appropri at e uni t s t o measure, f or exampl e, a f oot bal l pi t ch, t he di st ance t o
Bi rmi ngham, t he l engt h of a curt ai n, t he hei ght of a door, t he l engt h of a nai l , et c. (Sel ect
l engt hs t hat are wi t hi n t he l earners experi ence and rel evant t o i t .)
Pract i se est i mat i ng, measuri ng and recordi ng l engt hs i n di f f erent uni t s, usi ng di f f erent
measuri ng i nst rument s.
Order l engt hs i n met res i n deci mal not at i on. Use a rul e or t ape t o measure out l engt hs and
check t he resul t s.
Use a rul er marked i n mi l l i met res and l abel l ed i n cent i met res t o draw and measure l i nes of
di f f erent l engt hs.
Measures, shape
and space
60
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
weight using non-standard and
standard units*
know t hat 1000 g 1 kg
Example
Wei gh i ngredi ent s f or a reci pe.
Sel ect packaged goods by wei ght .
Wei gh a l et t er or parcel t o work out t he
post age rat e.
capacity using non-standard and
standard units*
know t hat 1000 ml 1 l i t re
Measure mi l k f or use i n a reci pe.
Mi x a babys bot t l e f eed accordi ng t o
i nst ruct i ons.
read, measure and compare
temperature using common units and
instruments
know how t o read a t hermomet er
underst and t hat t emperat ure can be
measured on di f f erent scal es, but t hat
Cel si us i s t he st andard scal e i n t he UK
Take own t emperat ure.
Set t he oven t emperat ure f or cooki ng.
choose and use appropriate units and
measuring instruments
know met ri c uni t s of l engt h, wei ght and
capaci t y
know whi ch i nst rument i s appropri at e f or
measuri ng l engt h, wei ght and capaci t y of
di f f eri ng magni t ude
Choose and use a 5 m t ape t o measure t he
di mensi ons of a room.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
i nf ormat i on
generate results
* As i mperi al uni t s are phased out ,
underst andi ng of i mperi al uni t s
shoul d be devel oped accordi ng t o
need.
sort 2-D and 3-D shapes to solve
practical problems using properties
(e.g. lines of symmetry, side length,
angles)
shape, e.g. si de l engt h, angl e, l i ne of
symmet ry
i dent i f y ri ght angl es i n 2-D shapes and i n
t he envi ronment
recogni se t hat a st rai ght l i ne i s equi val ent
t o t wo ri ght angl es
Example
Pack i t ems i nt o a del i very van.
Fi l l shel ves wi t h packaged i t ems.
6
7
8
9
1
61
Sample activities
Col l ect l abel s f rom di f f erent packagi ng (e.g. f ood and househol d i t ems) and compare t he
wei ght s.
Pract i se est i mat i ng, measuri ng and recordi ng wei ght s i n di f f erent uni t s, usi ng di f f erent
i nst rument s.
Mat ch f ami l i ar i t ems t o gi ven wei ght s, e.g. a packet of cri sps, a t i n of beans, a bag of ri ce;
30 g, 415 g, 3 kg. (Make sure t hat t here i s suf f i ci ent di f f erence i n t he wei ght s.)
Col l ect l abel s f rom di f f erent bot t l es, dri nk cart ons, et c. showi ng capaci t y i n ml or l i t res.
Est i mat e and check t he capaci t y of di f f erent cont ai ners f or di f f erent purposes, usi ng measuri ng
j ugs and ot her cont ai ners of known capaci t y, e.g. Can I get a l i t re of mi l k i n t hi s j ug? Can I mi x
5 l i t res of weed-ki l l er i n t hi s wat eri ng can? Can I use t hi s saucepan t o make 2 l i t res of soup?
Mat ch i t ems t o gi ven measures, e.g. a spoonf ul of medi ci ne, a can of dri nk, a l arge bot t l e of
dri nk, 5 ml , 330 ml , 2 l . (Make sure t here i s suf f i ci ent di f f erence i n t he capaci t i es.)
Compare t hermomet ers used f or di f f erent purposes cl i ni cal t hermomet ers and f ever scans
f or body t emperat ure, weat her t hermomet ers, t hermomet ers used i n cooki ng, et c.
Pract i se readi ng scal es on di f f erent t hermomet ers (usi ng di agrams i f necessary).
Look at oven t emperat ures i n di f f erent reci pes. Deci de what i s a hot oven or a cool oven.
Use t el et ext or a web si t e t o f i nd and compare t odays t emperat ures i n di f f erent ci t i es around
t he worl d.
Choose t he appropri at e i nst rument f rom a sel ect i on provi ded t o mat ch a vari et y of measuri ng
t asks, e.g. t ape measure, rul er, ki t chen scal es, l et t er scal es, bat hroom scal es, measuri ng j ugs,
spoons, medi ci ne cap, et c.
Look at t he di f f erent uni t s used i n Word (e.g. f ont si ze i n poi nt s, margi ns i n cm). Look at t he
opt i ons avai l abl e i n Tool s: Opt i ons (or Pref erences), General and experi ment wi t h di f f erent
uni t s.
Sample activities
Ident i f y ri ght angl es on everyday i t ems, e.g. t abl e, shel ves, paper, bri cks.
Sort 2-D shapes i nt o t hose wi t h ri ght angl es and t hose wi t hout .
Sort 3-D shapes i nt o t hose wi t h ri ght angl es and t hose wi t hout .
Use paper cut -out s of regul ar shapes t o f i nd l i nes of symmet ry by f ol di ng.
Sort 2-D shapes accordi ng t o t he number of si des, number of angl es, number of equal si des,
number of equal angl es, number of l i nes of symmet ry.
Sket ch t he l i nes of symmet ry i n shapes and i mages.
Invest i gat e ways of st acki ng 3-D shapes of t he same si ze on a shel f and f or a di spl ay,
e.g. cyl i nders (cans), cuboi ds (boxes).
Measures, shape
and space
62
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
sums of money and record
underst and pl ace val ue of whol e numbers
and deci mal s
know t hat , f or col umn addi t i on and
subt ract i on, deci mal s shoul d be al i gned by
t he deci mal poi nt
Example
Fi l l i n an expenses cl ai m.
Cal cul at e benef i t s or ent i t l ement s.
Check pay and deduct i ons on a paysl i p.
Work out t he cost of goods on credi t f rom
repayment s.
read, measure and record time in
common date formats and in the
12-hour and 24-hour clock
underst and and use common dat e f ormat s
underst and t i me i n t he 12-hour and
24-hour cl ock
know t hat mi dni ght i s 00:00, or 0000, and
12:00 or 1200 i s mi dday
underst and and use t i met abl es
know t he uni t s of t i me: mi l l enni um, cent ury,
year, mont h, week, day, hour, mi nut e,
second
Use t i met abl es.
Fi nd t ravel i nf ormat i on and schedul es on t he
Int ernet .
Pl an an event .
calculate using time
know t he rel at i onshi p bet ween uni t s of t i me,
e.g. 1 hour = 60 mi n
add and subt ract t i mes i n hours and mi nut es
convert uni t s of t i me, e.g. 70 mi nut es i s
1 hour 10 mi nut es
Cal cul at e a j ourney t i me f rom a t i met abl e.
Fi l l i n a t i me sheet .
length, weight, capacity and
temperature using common units and
instruments
know t he st andard met ri c uni t s of l engt h,
wei ght and capaci t y i ncl udi ng abbrevi at i ons
(km, m, cm, mm, kg, g, l , ml )
read scal es t o t he nearest l abel l ed and
Check t he t emperat ure i n t he workpl ace
agai nst regul at i ons.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
Common measures MSS1/L1
1
2
3
4
Part B: N1.1, N1.2, N1.3
63
Sample activities
Pri ce a l i st of i t ems f rom a mai l order cat al ogue and cal cul at e t he t ot al cost .
Sel ect i t ems t hat can be bought wi t hi n a gi ven pri ce range or budget .
Work out t he cost of t aki ng a f ami l y or a group of peopl e on a bus or t rai n j ourney, a vi si t t o t he
ci nema or some ot her out i ng or excursi on.
Work out t he t ot al cost of an i t em bought usi ng a credi t agreement or l oan, f rom t he weekl y or
mont hl y repayment s.
Organi se a cof f ee cl ub (or si mi l ar) wi t hi n t he group and work out what t hey need t o buy and
how much t o col l ect f rom each person.
Use a spreadsheet t o work out a personal or hol i day budget . Experi ment wi t h changes t o st ay
wi t hi n budget .
Use a spreadsheet t o record expendi t ure.
Ident i f y t he uses of di f f erent uni t s of t i me, e.g. seconds (t i mi ngs on a mi crowave oven, spri nt s
i n at hl et i cs, di f f erent processes i n a f act ory, et c.), mi nut es (boi l i ng an egg and ot her cooki ng
t i mes, t i mes of t rai ns and buses, l engt hs of TV programmes and f i l ms, et c.), and hours
(worki ng day, car j ourneys, f l i ght s, et c.).
Use st opwat ches, ordi nary wat ches, cl ocks and cal endars t o measure, record and compare t he
t i me t aken t o compl et e di f f erent act i vi t i es.
Di scuss t he di f f erence bet ween t he 12-hour and 24-hour cl ock and t he di f f erent not at i on f or
recordi ng t i me.
Mat ch 12- and 24-hour cl ock t i mes.
Use bus or t rai n t i met abl es t o answer quest i ons such as What t i me must I l eave Cambri dge t o
arri ve i n London by 10.00?, What t i me i s t he l ast bus home f rom t own?, et c.
Convert f l i ght depart ure t i mes i n hol i day brochures t o everyday descri pt i ons, such as hal f past
10 at ni ght .
Pract i se accessi ng onl i ne rai l t i met abl es f or di f f erent dat es and depart ure or arri val t i mes.
Work out t he l engt h of a worki ng day or j ob, f rom t he st art and f i ni sh t i mes recorded on
t i mesheet s or cl ock cards (i ncl udi ng breaks).
Work out t he number of hours worked i n a week.
Use bus and rai l t i met abl es t o cal cul at e j ourney t i mes f rom depart ure and arri val t i mes.
Cal cul at e t he durat i on of di f f erent act i vi t i es, e.g. radi o or TV programme, f i l m, f l i ght .
Choose uni t s and i nst rument s f or di f f erent measuri ng t asks. Est i mat e, t hen measure and read
scal es t o t he nearest l abel l ed or unl abel l ed di vi si on.
Di scuss t he di f f erent syst ems used f or measurement s met ri c and i mperi al uni t s. Produce a l i st
of t he di f f erent uni t s i n use f or wei ght , l engt h and capaci t y, wi t h approxi mat e equi val ences, e.g.
a l i t re i s a bi t l ess t han 2 pi nt s, a ki l o i s j ust over 2 pounds, a yard i s a bi t l ess t han a met re, et c.
Compare t emperat ures i n degrees Cel si us and degrees Fahrenhei t , usi ng everyday sources
where bot h are gi ven, e.g. reci pe books, oven manual s, hol i day brochures.
Discuss how temperature is important in some aspects of life and work, e.g. safe temperatures for
frozen foods and settings for domestic freezers, storing chemicals at the right temperature, etc.
Measures, shape
and space
64
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
distance
know t hat di st ance i s measured i n mi l es or
ki l omet res
underst and and use a mi l eage chart
know how t o use a si mpl e scal e t o
est i mat e di st ance on a road map
Example
Fi nd t he di st ance bet ween t wo ci t i es usi ng a
road map or mi l eage chart .
add and subtract common units of
measure within the same system
know t he rel at i onshi p bet ween met ri c uni t s
Work out t he l engt h of cabl i ng needed al ong
a part i cul ar rout e, e.g. f or a t el ephone
ext ensi on.
Work out personal wei ght gai n or l oss over a
peri od of t i me.
convert units of measure in the same
system
Compare t he di mensi ons of f urni t ure or
appl i ances gi ven i n cm and mm.
Convert measurement s t o t he same uni t s t o
work out an area.
work out the perimeter of simple
shapes
know t hat peri met er i s t he boundary of a
shape
know t hat peri met er i s measured i n uni t s of
l engt h
underst and t hat t he measurement s requi red
t o cal cul at e t he l engt h of t he peri met er
depend on t he shape
Work out t he f enci ng requi red f or a veget abl e
pl ot .
work out the area of rectangles
know t hat area i s a measure of surf ace
know what measurement s are requi red t o
cal cul at e area, and how t o obt ai n t hem
know t hat measurement s must be i n t he
same uni t s bef ore cal cul at i ng area
know t hat t he area of a rect angl e l engt h
wi dt h
know t hat area i s measured i n square uni t s
Work out t he f l oor area of a rect angul ar room.
Work out t he area of l awn t o cal cul at e how
much grass seed i s needed.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
5
6
7
8
9
Part B: N1.1, N1.2, N1.3
65
Sample activities
In di scussi on, est i mat e t he di st ances bet ween di f f erent t owns and ci t i es. Look at t he di st ances
on a road map and use t he mi l eage chart i n a road at l as t o f i nd t he act ual di st ances.
Use mi l eage chart s t o f i nd t he di st ances bet ween di f f erent t owns and ci t i es.
Fi nd a l ocal map on l i ne (e.g. www.st reet map.co.uk and ent er post code) and use t he scal e t o
est i mat e t he di st ance f rom home t o a l andmark such as a st at i on, hospi t al , school , et c.
Work out t he t ot al di st ances f or del i very vans, di st ri ct nurse, heal t h vi si t or, et c. f rom a l i st of
cal l s, usi ng a l ocal map, or mi l eage chart .
Cal cul at e t ot al s i n pract i cal si t uat i ons, e.g. mat eri al f or a curt ai n (wi ndow hei ght pl us hem).
Work out how much i s l ef t f rom a l engt h of t i mber, pi pe, mat eri al , et c. af t er cut t i ng of f a gi ven
amount .
Work out how much woul d be l ef t i n a cont ai ner of l i qui d af t er removi ng a gi ven amount .
Work out how much i s l ef t af t er usi ng a gi ven wei ght .
Convert measurement s of l engt h f rom one met ri c uni t t o anot her, e.g. mm t o cm, cm t o m and
vi ce versa.
Convert measurement s of wei ght f rom one met ri c uni t t o anot her, e.g. kg t o g and vi ce versa.
Convert measurement s of capaci t y f rom one met ri c uni t t o anot her, e.g. l t o ml and vi ce versa.
Use a t abl e f or common i mperi al measures f or wei ght , l engt h and capaci t y t o convert bet ween
pounds and ounces, f eet , i nches and yards, pi nt s and gal l ons i n pract i cal si t uat i ons.
Di scuss t he meani ng of peri met er and i t s use i n pract i cal cont ext s.
Fi nd t he peri met er of shapes i n di f f erent ways, e.g.: f or l arge shapes such as a room or garden
use paci ng, a t rundl e wheel , met re st i ck or measuri ng t ape; f or smal l er shapes use a pi ece of
st ri ng, a 30 cm or met re rul e.
Di scuss ways of f i ndi ng t he peri met er of a rect angul ar shape by measuri ng t wo si des and
deri ve a si mpl e f ormul a i n words. Use t he f ormul a t o check t he peri met ers of some of t he
shapes t hat have been f ound previ ousl y.
Invest i gat e si mpl e shapes (rect angl es, squares) wi t h t he same peri met er.
Di scuss reasons f or f i ndi ng areas, e.g. f or i t ems t hat are sol d by t he square met re or square
yard (such as carpet s), t o est i mat e t he amount of pai nt requi red t o pai nt a wal l (coverage i s
gi ven on t he t i n).
Di scuss t he uni t s of measure f or area, e.g. square cent i met re, square met re, square yard and
t he di f f erent ways t o wri t e t hem, e.g. cm
2
. Deci de whi ch uni t s are appropri at e f or di f f erent -
si zed areas.
Look at di f f erent ways of f i ndi ng areas by count i ng squares on drawi ngs on squared paper,
by drawi ng a pl an and drawi ng i n squares t o scal e.
Fi nd areas of di f f erent rect angul ar shapes and f rom t he resul t s const ruct a f ormul a i n words t o
f i nd t he area of a rect angl e.
Est i mat e, measure and cal cul at e areas of di f f erent rect angul ar shapes, e.g. wal l s, t abl e t ops,
f l oor areas, et c.
Measures, shape
and space
66
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
draw 2-D shapes in different
orientations using grids (e.g. in
diagrams or plans)
know t he propert i es of regul ar 2-D shapes
Draw a t i l i ng pat t ern f or a f l oor or wal l area.
Draw a f l oor pl an t o show a room l ayout .
solve problems using the
mathematical properties of regular
2-D shapes (e.g. tessellation or
symmetry)
know t hat angl es are measured i n degrees
know t hat a ri ght angl e i s 90 or a
quart er-t urn
know t hat f our ri ght angl es f i l l a space
i dent i f y regul ar shapes
Example
Sel ect t i l es f or a f l oor or wal l .
work out simple volume (e.g. cuboids)
know t hat vol ume i s a measure of space
know what measurement s are requi red t o
cal cul at e vol ume, and how t o obt ai n t hem
same uni t s bef ore cal cul at i ng vol ume
know t hat t he vol ume of a cuboi d
l engt h wi dt h hei ght (or dept h)
know t hat vol ume i s measured i n cubi c
uni t s
Example
Work out t he vol ume of soi l needed t o f i l l a
rect angul ar pl ant er.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
Shape and space MSS2/L1
10
1
2
Part B: N1.1, N1.2, N1.3
67
Use pi nboards, i somet ri c and squared
paper t o hel p.
Draw si mpl e pl ans.
Use a graphi cs package (or Draw i n
Word wi t h gri dl i nes di spl ayed and set t o
Snap t o gri d ) t o draw 2-D shapes.
Sample activities
Invest i gat e whi ch regul ar shapes wi l l
t essel l at e (i .e. f i t t oget her wi t hout a gap).
Pl an a t i l i ng pat t ern usi ng rect angul ar t i l es
of t he same si ze.
Pl an a t i l i ng pat t ern usi ng t wo si zes of
square t i l es.
Pl an a t i l i ng pat t ern usi ng square t i l es wi t h
a symmet ri cal pat t ern.
Pl an t hei r own t i l i ng pat t ern usi ng any
shape, or combi nat i on of shapes.
Use t he propert i es of regul ar shapes i n
sol vi ng peri met er probl ems.
Use a graphi cs package (or Draw i n
Word) t o creat e t essel l at i ons usi ng a
si ngl e shape and t ransf ormat i ons (copy
and past e t he shape and f l i p or rot at e).
Sample activities
Di scuss what vol ume means, how i t i s used, what uni t s are used and how t hey are wri t t en
(i ncl ude words l i ke cube, cubi c, et c).
Work out t he vol ume of a box by seei ng how many cubes wi l l f i t .
Use t he f ormul a f or f i ndi ng area t o const ruct a f ormul a f or f i ndi ng vol ume.
Work out t he vol ume f or si mpl e cuboi d shapes, such as boxes.
Cal cul at e vol umes f rom gi ven di mensi ons i n pract i cal t asks, e.g. vol ume of concret e, soi l .
This shape
tessellates it
leaves no gaps.
Tessellations
Investigate other shapes made up of four squares.
Investigate pentagons, hexagons, octogons.
Circles dont tessellate they
leave gaps.
Islamic art and the art of M.C. Escher provide interesting
stimulus material that can be used to discuss and identify
tessellations.
Measures, shape
and space
68
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
calculate with sums of money and
convert between currencies
underst and t hat exchange rat es of
currenci es are not f i xed, but vary on a dai l y
basi s
underst and buyi ng rat e and sel l i ng rat e
Example
Cal cul at e t he pri ce i n st erl i ng of an i t em
quot ed i n dol l ars (e.g. pri ces on web si t es).
Cal cul at e t he pri ce of an i t em or servi ce when
on hol i day abroad, e.g. a meal , car hi re, wat er
sport s, boat t ri p, et c.
Cal cul at e t he val ue of currency brought back
f rom hol i day.
calculate, measure and record time in
different formats
underst and dat es and t imes writ t en in
dif f erent f ormat s
know how t o use measuring inst rument s,
e.g. t imers on appliances, clocks, wat ches,
et c.
know t he relat ionship bet ween unit s of t ime,
e.g. sec, min, hr, day, week, mont h, year
Measure and record t he down t i me of a
machi ne.
Pl an an event .
Cal cul at e cooki ng t i me accordi ng t o wei ght ,
e.g. f or a t urkey.
estimate, measure and compare
length, distance, weight and capacity
using metric and, where appropriate,
imperial units
know t he met ri c uni t s of l engt h, di st ance,
wei ght , capaci t y
know t he common i mperi al uni t s of l engt h,
di st ance, wei ght , capaci t y, where
appropri at e, e.g. yard, f eet , i nches, mi l es,
t ons, pounds, ounces, pi nt s, gal l ons
read scal es t o di f f erent l evel s of accuracy,
i ncl udi ng readi ng bet ween marked di vi si ons
Compare t he nut ri t i onal i nf ormat i on on
di f f erent f ood l abel s.
Check t he cal i brat i ons on a machi ne.
estimate, measure and compare
temperature, including reading scales
and conversion tables
know how t o read a t hermomet er
know t hat t emperat ure can be measured on
Cel si us and Fahrenhei t scal es
Adj ust t he t emperat ure on a cent ral heat i ng
syst em.
Check t he t emperat ure on a f reezer agai nst
saf et y regul at i ons.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
1
2
3
4
Part B: N2.1, N2.2, N2.3
69
Sample activities
Use i nf ormat i on f rom newspapers, banks, t he Int ernet , et c. t o f i nd t he val ue of 1 i n di f f erent
currenci es. Di scuss how t hese vary f rom day t o day.
Gi ven exchange rat es f or 1 f or a sel ect i on of count ri es/ currenci es, cal cul at e t he equi val ent
amount f or di f f erent sums, e.g. 10, 50, 100, 200.
Invest i gat e t he di f f erence bet ween t he buyi ng rat e and t he sel l i ng rat e f or di f f erent currenci es
and di scuss t he i mpl i cat i ons.
Use approxi mat i on t o cal cul at e t he cost of goods i n t o compare pri ces i n di f f erent currenci es.
Use t he Euro t o compare t he cost of goods i n di f f erent count ri es.
Look at on-l i ne shoppi ng si t es, hot el s or f l i ght pri ces, et c. t hat use di f f erent currenci es on t he
Int ernet and convert t he pri ces t o , usi ng any rel evant met hod.
Use a cal cul at or t o convert bet ween currenci es and check t he cal cul at i on usi ng a wri t t en or
ment al approxi mat i on.
Use bank buyi ng rat es t o convert amount s i n di f f erent currenci es brought back f rom a hol i day
i nt o agai n, e.g. 3000 pt s, $50, et c.
Use t he Int ernet t o l ook at i nf ormat i on on web si t es i n di f f erent count ri es t o see how t he dat e
i s wri t t en.
Use a cal endar t o cal cul at e t he l engt h of t i me bet ween gi ven dat es, e.g. t erm dat es, hol i day
dat es.
Cal cul at e t he ret urn dat e f rom a gi ven depart ure dat e (f or hol i days) f or di f f erent t i me spans,
e.g. 7 days, 10 days, 14 days.
Cal cul at e j ourney t i mes f rom t i met abl es.
Di scuss t he appropri at e uni t s of measure f or l engt h, di st ance, wei ght , capaci t y, and t he use of
met ri c and i mperi al uni t s.
Suggest t he appropri at e uni t s of measure f or di f f erent gi ven si t uat i ons, e.g. di st ance i n t he UK,
di st ance i n ot her European count ri es, l engt hs of di f f erent races (short spri nt s, mi ddl e di st ance,
l ong di st ance and marat hons), wei ght s of groceri es, cars, et c.
Est i mat e and check di st ances bet ween t owns, ci t i es i n t he UK and f urt her af i el d, usi ng
si gnpost s, di st ance chart s i n road at l ases, est i mat i on f rom known di st ances on maps, et c.
Undert ake measuri ng t asks t o varyi ng degrees of accuracy usi ng appropri at e i nst rument s.
Check t he st orage t emperat ures f or ref ri gerat ors and f reezer compart ment s, convert i ng bet ween
Cel si us and Fahrenhei t i f necessary, and deci di ng on saf e st orage t emperat ures f or di f f erent
t ypes of f ood.
Check Heal t h and Saf et y regul at i ons f or worki ng t emperat ures.
Look at oven t emperat ures f or di f f erent reci pes; convert bet ween Cel si us and Fahrenhei t and
est i mat e val ues f or cool , medi um and hot ovens i n bot h syst ems.
Be abl e t o read and record t he t emperat ure accurat el y f rom a vari et y of di f f erent devi ces, bot h
anal ogue and di gi t al , and recogni se whet her t hey are i n Fahrenhei t or Cel si us f rom t he devi ce or
t he si t uat i on.
Measures, shape
and space
70
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
calculate with units of measure within
the same system
know t he rel at i onshi p bet ween common
i mperi al uni t s, where appropri at e
Example
Work out t he best val ue of product s of
di f f erent wei ght s or capaci t i es.
calculate with units of measure
between systems, using conversion
tables and scales, and approximate
conversion factors
know rough equi val ences bet ween common
met ri c and i mperi al measures, e.g. 1 l b i s
about 450 grams, a l i t re i s a bi t l ess t han 2
pi nt s, a gal l on i s about 4
1
/ 2 l i t res, a
ki l ogram i s a bi t more t han 2 l b, a met re i s
a bi t more t han a yard, an i nch i s about 2
1
/ 2
cm, a f oot i s about 30 cm
know how t o read conversi on scal es and
t abl es
know how t o use approxi mat e conversi on
f act ors, e.g. 1 i nch 2.54 cm
Convert l i t res t o gal l ons t o check t he pet rol
consumpt i on on an ol d vehi cl e, or t o compare
i t wi t h a new vehi cl e.
understand and use given formulae
for finding perimeters and areas of
regular shapes (e.g. rectangular and
circular surfaces)
know what i s meant by peri met er,
ci rcumf erence, di amet er, radi us
recogni se t he symbol f or pi , and know i t s
approxi mat e val ue
know how t o make subst i t ut i ons i n a
f ormul a and work out t he resul t
Cal cul at e t he l engt h of f enci ng needed t o
f ence of f a ci rcul ar pond.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
5
6
7
Part B: N2.1, N2.2, N2.3
71
Sample activities
Cal cul at e t he amount of pai nt requi red f rom t he area of wal l t o be pai nt ed.
Cal cul at e t he number of shel ves of a gi ven l engt h t hat coul d be cut f rom a l engt h of t i mber.
Cal cul at e t he t ot al area of carpet needed f or a room and use t he i nf ormat i on t o cal cul at e t he
t ot al cost f rom t he cost per square met re.
Use conversi on t abl es t o convert wei ght s, l engt hs, capaci t i es usi ng any rel evant measures,
e.g.: capaci t i es on mi l k bot t l es, t anks, cont ai ners; wei ght s of vehi cl es, groceri es, babi es,
adul t s; di mensi ons of t i mber, sport s pi t ches, et c.
Const ruct a conversi on chart or l i ne graph t o convert mi l es t o ki l omet res, and use i t t o convert
bet ween t he t wo, usi ng di st ances bet ween t owns, et c.
Check t he use of t abl es by usi ng gi ven approxi mat e conversi on f act ors.
Mat ch rough equi val ences bet ween met ri c and i mperi al uni t s.
Fi nd t he number of t i mes t he di amet er of
a ci rcl e f i t s around t he ci rcumf erence,
usi ng st ri ng and a dust bi n l i d, t hread and
a pl at e, et c. Compare t he resul t s f rom
measuri ng several di f f erent obj ect s t o
agree an approxi mat i on.
Use t he resul t s of t he i nvest i gat i on t o
work out a si mpl e f ormul a f or t he
ci rcumf erence of a ci rcl e and check t he
resul t s of usi ng t he f ormul a.
Pract i se usi ng gi ven f ormul ae t o f i nd t he
ci rcumf erence of ci rcl es, and ot her
regul ar shapes.
Use i l l ust rat i ons of a ci rcl e di vi ded i nt o
equal sl i ces, wi t h sl i ces re-arranged t o
approxi mat e a rect angl e. Di scuss t he
l engt h of t he si des of t he rect angl e t o
deri ve t he f ormul a f or area.
Pract i se usi ng gi ven f ormul ae t o f i nd t he
area of ci rcl es, and ot her regul ar shapes.
Set up a spreadsheet t o i nvest i gat e t he
area of di f f erent rect angl es wi t h t he
same peri met er. Whi ch rect angl es have
t he l argest / smal l est area?
mArea of a circle
area =r r=r
2
The more equal sectors (slices) there are in the circle, the closer the
rearrangement becomes to a rectangle, of length r (half the
circumference), and width r (radius)
Measures, shape
and space
72
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
for finding areas of composite shapes
(e.g. non-rectangular rooms or plots
of land)
same uni t s bef ore cal cul at i ng area
know how t o break down a composi t e
shape i nt o regul ar shapes
Example
Cal cul at e t he wal l area f or pai nt i ng, excl udi ng
doors and wi ndows.
for finding volumes of regular shapes
(e.g. a cuboid or cylinder)
same uni t s bef ore cal cul at i ng vol ume
recogni se t he symbol f or pi , and know i t s
approxi mat e val ue
know how t o make subst i t ut i ons i n a
f ormul a and work out t he resul t
Work out t he vol ume of soi l requi red f or a
cyl i ndri cal t ub.
work out dimensions from scale
drawings (e.g. 1:20)
underst and scal e wri t t en as a rat i o
underst and t hat , when expressed as a
rat i o, t he scal e i s i ndependent of uni t s
Cal cul at e t he act ual cut t i ng l engt hs f rom a
scal e drawi ng.
Work out di st ances f rom t he scal e on a map.
recognise and use common
2-D representations of 3-D objects
(e.g. in maps and plans)
underst and t hat 3-D obj ect s can be
represent ed i n 2-D
Example
Set a machi ne f rom i nf ormat i on on drawi ngs.
solve problems involving 2-D shapes
and parallel lines (e.g. in laying down
carpet tiles)
underst and t he meani ng of paral l el , and
recogni se paral l el l i nes
Arrange a cut t i ng pat t ern on mat eri al so as t o
mi ni mi se wast age.
Lay f l oor t i l es.
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
Shape and space MSS2/L2
8
9
10
1
2
Part B: N2.1, N2.2, N2.3
73
Sample activities
Di scuss f i ndi ng t he peri met er of composi t e
shapes, such as rooms, whi ch are not
drawn t o scal e and do not have al l t he
measurement s i ncl uded, and devi se ways
of f i ndi ng t he l engt hs of al l t he edges.
Pract i se f i ndi ng t he peri met er of pl ans wi t h
some mi ssi ng l engt hs, usi ng pl ans drawn
on pl ai n paper so t hat mi ssi ng l engt hs
must be cal cul at ed f rom t he i nf ormat i on on
ot her edges.
Use pl ans drawn on pl ai n paper t o f i nd t he
areas of composi t e shapes. Cal cul at e any
mi ssi ng di mensi ons, and use a f ormul a t o
f i nd t he area of each component .
Di scuss how vol ume i s f ound (f or regul ar
shapes) by f i ndi ng t he area of t he end
and mul t i pl yi ng t hi s by t he l engt h . Appl y
t hi s knowl edge t o f i ndi ng a f ormul a f or
t he vol ume of a cyl i nder.
Use t he f ormul a f or t he vol ume of a
cyl i nder t o f i nd t he vol ume of di f f erent -
si zed cyl i nders, usi ng t he correct uni t s i n
al l cases.
Di scuss scal es and how t hey are used. Work f rom exampl es such as If t he scal e i s 1:100 on a
pl an, what woul d a cent i met re represent ?, What woul d 10 cm represent ?
Provi de si mpl e pl ans and scal e drawi ngs, wi t h di f f erent scal es, and work out act ual
measurement s, e.g. house pl ans, room pl ans, t empl at es f or maki ng somet hi ng, et c. Use
di f f erent scal es, e.g. 1:20, 1:10, 1:50.
Sample activities
Invest i gat e di f f erent represent at i ons of 3-D obj ect s i n 2-D, e.g. net s of sol i ds, pl ans, el evat i ons.
Descri be 3-D obj ect s f rom 2-D represent at i ons.
Ext ract measurement s f rom pl ans and el evat i ons.
Expl ore di f f erent 3-D i mages i n a graphi cs package, or use Draw i n Word.
Di scuss pract i cal exampl es of usi ng paral l el l i nes, e.g. hangi ng wal l paper, l ayi ng t i l es or pavi ng
st ones.
Use t he propert i es of paral l el l i nes t o sol ve everyday probl ems, e.g. f i ndi ng t he amount of
covi ng needed t o go round a cei l i ng by usi ng t he correspondi ng f l oor measurement s.
Estimating areas
In the real world, shapes dont always come with straight lines. A
flower bed or lawn may not be rectangular. Show learners how to
estimate areas by using the measurements of approximate composite
shapes.
Measures, shape
and space
74
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
Data HD1/E1
extract simple information from lists
underst and t hat l i st s can be ordered i n
di f f erent ways, e.g. al phabet i cal l y,
numeri cal l y, and t hat not al l l i st s are
ordered i n a l ogi cal way
Example
Fi nd an emergency t el ephone number f rom a
short cont act l i st .
sort and classify objects using a
single criterion
underst and t he concept of a cri t eri on,
e.g. a si ngl e f eat ure such as col our, shape,
gender
Sort bot t l es by col our f or di sposal at a bot t l e
bank.
construct simple representations or
diagrams, using knowledge of
numbers, measures or shape and
space
underst and t hat t he purpose of
represent at i ons i s t o communi cat e
i nf ormat i on
underst and t hat i nf ormat i on can be
represent ed i n di f f erent ways
Wri t e a shoppi ng l i st wi t h mul t i pl e i t ems.
1
2
3
Handling data
75
Sample activities
Pract i se accessi ng i nf ormat i on f rom si mpl e l i st s, e.g. an emergency phone number, quant i t i es
on a shoppi ng l i st , a room number or phone ext ensi on f rom a personnel l i st , quant i t i es on a
pi cki ng l i st .
Pract i se f i ndi ng phone numbers st ored i n a mobi l e phone.
Di scuss t he concept of cl assi f i cat i on and cri t eri a usi ng pract i cal exampl es,
e.g. sort i ng i t ems f or recycl i ng (paper, gl ass, pl ast i c), books arranged by subj ect , musi c
cl assi f i ed by t ype, et c.
Rel at e t o ot her areas of t he curri cul um, e.g. cl assi f yi ng 2-D and 3-D shapes; cl assi f yi ng i t ems
by si ze (e.g. cl ot hes), capaci t y (dri nks, pai nt ), et c.
Look at di f f erent ways of represent i ng

i nf ormat i on, e.g. a numbered l i st , a
shoppi ng l i st , pi ct ori al represent at i ons,
si mpl e pi ct ograms, col our codi ng, si mpl e
di agrams, et c.
Wri t e a short l i st i n Word, and use t he

aut omat i c numberi ng but t on t o number
t he i t ems.
Use Cl i p Art or Symbol s t o creat e si mpl e

represent at i ons i n Word of t he group
act i vi t y, or ot her t asks.
Collecting and presenting data group activity
Conduct a simple survey within the group, e.g. number of
smokers/non-smokers, number of meat-eaters/vegetarians, etc. Present
results in different ways, e.g. pictorially, numerically. Discuss different
representations and interpret results, e.g. There are more smokers than
non-smokers.
This activity can be undertaken using skills in sorting, counting and
comparing, and introduces the concept of collection, categorisation
and representation of data in preparation for work at higher levels.
76
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
i nf ormat i on
generate results
Data HD1/E2
make numerical comparisons from
block graphs
underst and t hat t he hei ght of t he bar
i ndi cat es t he numeri cal val ue i n t hat
cat egory, and so val ues are compared
t hrough t he hei ght s of bars
underst and t hat t i t l es, l abel s, et c. provi de
essent i al i nf ormat i on
Compare t emperat ures at hol i day dest i nat i ons
usi ng chart s i n brochures.
sort and classify objects using two
criteria
underst and t he concept of a cri t eri on,
e.g. a f eat ure such as col our, shape,
gender, hei ght
Sort cl ot hes f or a j umbl e sal e by si ze and
person, e.g. mens/ womens/ chi l drens.
extract information from lists, tables,
simple diagrams and block graphs
underst and t hat t abl es are arranged i n
rows and col umns
underst and t hat a t i t l e, l abel s, et c. provi de
i nf ormat i on
Example
Ext ract i nf ormat i on of i nt erest f rom sport s
l eague t abl es, f i xt ure l i st s, et c.
Ext ract i nf ormat i on f rom chart s i n a hol i day
brochure (e.g. average dai l y hours of
sunshi ne, rai nf al l , t emperat ure) f or a chosen
mont h.
collect simple numerical information
underst and t he need t o be cl ear about
what i nf ormat i on i s requi red pri or t o
col l ect i on
recorded i n di f f erent ways
Carry out a survey on t he pref erred day of t he
week f or meet i ngs.
represent information so that it makes
sense to others (e.g. in lists, tables
and diagrams)
represent ed i n di f f erent ways, e.g. a l i st , a
t abl e, a di agram
underst and t he i mport ance of l abel l i ng
i nf ormat i on i n t abl es and di agrams
Represent t he resul t s of a survey t o show t he
pref erred day of t he week f or meet i ngs i n t he
f orm of a t abl e or as a si mpl e bar chart .
Produce a si mpl e t i met abl e t o pl an and
manage t hei r own l earni ng.
1
2
3
4
5
Handling data
77
Di scuss si mpl e bl ock graphs i n newspapers, magazi nes, hol i day brochures, and ext ract some
i nf ormat i on f rom t i t l es, l abel s, and by i dent i f yi ng l argest cat egory, et c.
Use si mpl e bl ock graphs on t opi cs of i nt erest t o pract i se maki ng numeri cal compari sons.
Di scuss t he concept of cl assi f i cat i on and cri t eri a usi ng exampl es, such as (si mpl i f i ed) publ i c
i nf ormat i on report s (e.g. f i gures f or heal t h, cri me, drug addi ct i on, empl oyment , et c. by age
group and gender), books cl assi f i ed by subj ect and aut hor.
Rel at e t he concept t o ot her areas of t he curri cul um, e.g. cl assi f yi ng shapes by propert i es.
Sample activities
Ext ract i nf ormat i on f rom si mpl e pri ce l i st s, menus, cat al ogues, brochures.
Descri be t he l ayout of a room f rom a si mpl e pl an.
Read measurement s i n met res f rom a si mpl e f l oor pl an of a room.
Read di mensi ons i n cent i met res f rom si mpl e di agrams or t abl es i n a cat al ogue.
Col l ect dat a t hrough surveys i n t he group,

e.g. t he mode of t ransport t o work/ cl ass.
Di scuss: possi bl e ways t o record dat a,
e.g. a si mpl e t al l y agai nst cat egori es,
how t o det ermi ne cat egori es, t he need
f or t he cat egory ot her .
Provi de si mpl e set s of dat a and di scuss

sui t abl e ways of represent i ng t hem l i st ,
t abl e, di agram.
Sket ch a si mpl e room pl an showi ng t he

l ocat i on of t he mai n f eat ures.
Use t he Insert Tabl e but t on i n Word t o

creat e si mpl e t abl es i n whi ch t o
represent i nf ormat i on.
Ent er l abel s and dat a i nt o t wo col umns

on a spreadsheet (e.g. days of t he week,
and hours spent on group act i vi t y).
Choose a common activity on which to collect individual data using
measurement of time, e.g. number of hours spent watching TV,
number of hours spent on housework, number of hours spent
studying. Collect and record data to the nearest hour, each day for one
week.
When data has been collected, discuss how to present it in a bar chart,
e.g. days on one axis, number of hours on the other; does it matter
which way round? Discuss possible scales, taking account of
maximum daily number of hours to be represented.
Learners present own data in a vertical or horizontal bar chart.
Compare charts and discuss results, e.g.: How easy are charts to
interpret? Are there individual or common patterns (for example,
more hours spent on the activity at the weekend than on weekdays)?
In the group, discuss what learners might expect to happen if the
survey were repeated. Extend discussion to large-scale surveys and
what might influence results, e.g. when the survey takes place, who is
questioned, what happens when results are combined for a group.
(The last point introduces the concept of average for work at higher
levels; the individual charts can be compared to identify possible
common patterns, differences, or extremes, and lead to discussion
about why social data might not appear to reflect individual habits.)
78
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
i nf ormat i on
generate results
make numerical comparisons from
bar charts and pictograms
underst and t hat compari sons can be made
f rom t he hei ght or l engt h of bars, or t he
number of pi ct ures
underst and t hat a pi ct ure or i con i n a
pi ct ogram can represent more t han one, but
t hat each pi ct ure or i con represent s t he
same number
Compare out put wi t h t arget s on a bar chart .
extract numerical information from
lists, tables, diagrams and simple
charts
underst and t hat t he t i t l e, l abel s, key, et c.
provi de i nf ormat i on
use a scal e t o ext ract numeri cal val ues
Example
Ext ract i nf ormat i on f rom a pri ce l i st .
Ext ract i nf ormat i on f rom a part s dat abase.
Use a map t o l ocat e l ocal ameni t i es and
servi ces.
Data HD1/E3
organise and represent information in
different ways so that it makes sense
to others
know how t o present dat a i n t abl es, chart s
and di agrams
know how t o use a si mpl e scal e t o
represent dat a i n a bar chart or pi ct ogram
underst and t he di f f erent el ement s i n chart s,
e.g. t he t i t l e, axi s, scal e, key
l abel di agrams and chart s
Represent col l ect ed dat a on TV advert i si ng i n
a bar chart .
Represent col l ect ed dat a rel evant t o work,
t rai ni ng or l ei sure i nt erest s i n a sui t abl e f orm.
make observations and record
numerical information using a tally
underst and t he i mport ance of def i ni ng
cat egori es pri or t o col l ect i ng dat a
know what i s meant by a t al l y
know t hat t al l y marks have t o be count ed
up t o gi ve a f requency
Col l ect dat a on TV advert i si ng cat egori sed by
product t ype (f ood, cars, Int ernet servi ces,
et c.) duri ng peak vi ewi ng t i me on one channel
i n one eveni ng.
Col l ect dat a rel evant t o work, t rai ni ng or
l ei sure i nt erest s.
1
2
3
4
Handling data
79
Ident i f y t he scal e on t he axi s of a bar chart . Ident i f y t he cat egori es, usi ng t he key i f necessary.
How do l earners compare t he f requency (numeri cal val ue) i n t wo cat egori es (i .e. vi sual )? How do
t hey compare t he di f f erence bet ween t hem (t he need f or a scal e)?
Ident i f y t he scal e on a pi ct ogram. What does each pi ct ure or i con represent ? Ident i f y t he
cat egori es. How do l earners compare t he f requency of t wo cat egori es? How do t hey know t he
f requency (val ue) of a cat egory? How do t hey f i nd t he di f f erence bet ween t wo cat egori es?
Use bar chart s and pi ct ograms wi t h appropri at e scal es on t opi cs of i nt erest t o pract i se maki ng
numeri cal compari sons.
Sample activities
Ext ract i nf ormat i on f rom t abl es i n pri ce l i st s, cat al ogues, brochures, web si t es (e.g. t ravel and
hol i day si t es).
Fol l ow di rect i ons on a si mpl e l ocal map.
Int erpret si mpl e di agrams, e.g. room pl ans, di mensi ons.
Di scuss and i nt erpret i nf ormat i on f rom st rai ght f orward chart s i n newspapers, magazi nes, et c.
Ident i f y t he key el ement s. What i nf ormat i on i s gi ven, what i s mi ssi ng (e.g. t i t l e, year, number
i n survey, et c.)?
Ext ract numeri cal i nf ormat i on f rom gi ven chart s.
Di spl ay t he dat a gat hered above i n a

sui t abl e t abl e, bar chart or pi ct ogram.
Provi de si mpl e set s of dat a f or l earners t o

represent i n di f f erent ways.
Expl ore di f f erent graphi c represent at i ons

usi ng a spreadsheet program.
Look at f orms t hat col l ect dat a. Ident i f y

and di scuss t he cat egori es, e.g. et hni c
ori gi n what are t he choi ces?
Agree sensi bl e cat egori es f or di f f erent

dat a col l ect i ons, e.g. t he number of
peopl e i n a househol d (e.g. 1, 2, 3, 4,
more t han 4), mont h of bi rt hday, t raf f i c
survey (al l vehi cl es? by cat egory, such as
car, bus, heavy l orri es?).
Col l ect dat a i n a t al l y chart .
Transl at e t he t al l y chart i nt o a f requency

t abl e.
In a group, choose a topic and design a simple data collection sheet
that learners can use to collect data by category, using a tally, e.g. If
there were an election tomorrow, how would you vote? Labour,
Conservative, Lib Dem, Other, Wont vote?
Each learner to collect data from up to five people (depending on
number of learners in the group). When data has been collected,
combine tallies on a flip chart and work out frequencies. Discuss how
to present the data in a bar chart, e.g. what will go on each axis, what
is a suitable scale. Each learner to draw a bar chart, including title and
labels. Compare and interpret results.
Discuss how social data is collected and presented, e.g.: representative
samples; grouped according to age, gender, social class (can introduce
Registrar Generals classifications). Discuss what changes would be
necessary to the data collection sheet to repeat the group survey to
show voting intentions by gender. How could this data be presented in
a bar chart? Why might results from the group survey differ from
national surveys (e.g. size of sample, not representative)?
80
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
Data and statistical measures HD1/L1
collect, organise and represent
discrete data (e.g. in tables, charts,
diagrams and line graphs)
know how t o choose a sensi bl e scal e t o f i t
t he dat a
l abel chart s, graphs, di agrams
Col l ect dat a rel evant t o work, t rai ni ng or
l ei sure i nt erest s, and represent i t i n a sui t abl e
f ormat .
Represent t he col l ect ed dat a rel evant t o work,
t rai ni ng or l ei sure i nt erest s.
extract and interpret information
(e.g. in tables, diagrams, charts and
line graphs)
underst and t hat t he t i t l e, l abel s, key, et c.
provi de i nf ormat i on
know how t o read t he scal e on an axi s
know how t o use a si mpl e scal e such as
1 cm t o 1 m
know how t o obt ai n i nf ormat i on f rom a
pi ct ogram, pi e chart , bar chart , si ngl e-l i ne
graph, i ncl udi ng use of deci mal numbers
Example
Use a l ocal map.
Ext ract i nf ormat i on f rom pri ce l i st s,
cat al ogues, hol i day brochures, et c.
find the arithmetical average (mean)
for a set of data
know t hat t he mean i s one sort of average
(t he most common)
know t hat t he mean i s worked out by
addi ng up t he i t ems, and di vi di ng by t he
number of i t ems
underst and t hat t he mean can gi ve a
di st ort ed average i f one or t wo val ues are
much hi gher or l ower t han t he ot her val ues,
e.g. t he mean sal ary or wage i n a company
can be di st ort ed by one or t wo very hi gh
sal ari es
Fi nd t he average age of peopl e i n a group.
Fi nd t he goal average of a f oot bal l pl ayer.
find the range for a set of data
underst and t hat t he range measures t he
spread of a set of dat a
underst and t hat t he range i s t he di f f erence
bet ween t he smal l est and l argest val ues i n
t he set of dat a
Cal cul at e t he range i n a pat i ent s t emperat ure
i n a 24-hour peri od.
1
2
3
4
Part B: N1.1, N1.2, N1.3
Handling data
81
Ident i f y sui t abl e met hods f or col l ect i ng and

recordi ng di f f erent dat a, e.g. count i ng
(st ock checks), t al l y (e.g. t raf f i c f l ow, oral
survey), quest i onnai re and anal ysi s
(wri t t en survey).
Sample activities
Ext ract i nf ormat i on f rom t abl es i n pri ce

l i st s, cat al ogues, brochures, web si t es.
Ext ract and i nt erpret i nf ormat i on f rom

st rai ght -l i ne graphs such as conversi on
graphs, sal es f i gures, t emperat ure chart s,
et c.
Int erpret di agrams or drawi ngs i n a

pract i cal cont ext , e.g. f l oor pl ans, si mpl e
assembl y i nst ruct i ons.
Int erpret i nf ormat i on f ound i n t he

newspapers f ol l owi ng a budget . The
changes are of t en di spl ayed i n bar chart s,
pi e chart s, l i ne graphs or i n t abul ar f orm.
Fi nd t he mean of gi ven set s of dat a, such as wages, t emperat ures, house pri ces, rai nf al l , dai l y
at t endance i n a week (e.g. at a vi si t or at t ract i on, cl ub), dai l y/ weekl y/ mont hl y sal es t ot al s.
Consi der everyday exampl es of t he use of t he word range and what i t means, e.g. pri ce range,
age range, et c.
Fi nd t he range of gi ven set s of dat a, such as wages, t emperat ures, house pri ces, rai nf al l , dai l y
at t endance i n a week (e.g. at a vi si t or at t ract i on, cl ub), dai l y/ weekl y/ mont hl y sal es t ot al s.
Interpreting and presenting data
There are many textbooks and other learning materials that provide
exercises in interpreting and presenting data in charts and graphs.
These will mostly use simplified data and scales to enable learners to
develop skills in handling data.
However, in everyday life data tends to be more complex, and learners
need to understand that charts and graphs can be used to persuade
and mislead as well as to inform. Collect a range of materials to
illustrate this and use as the basis for discussion, e.g. charts and graphs
from adverts, newspapers, reports. To encourage learners to ask
critical questions, prepare statements about a chart or graph and, in
the group, discuss which ones can be validated from the information
available (these could be in a variety of styles, including newspaper
headlines making bold claims).
In practical tasks, ask learners to explore different ways of presenting
the same set of data, not just different formats, but using different
scales for the same format. For example, what is the visual effect on
the slope of a line graph of choosing a different scale? What is the
effect if the scale doesnt start at zero? Although learners are less likely
to present data in everyday life, these activities can help to develop
skills in the critical interpretation of charts and graphs.
Represent gi ven set s of dat a i n sui t abl e ways.
Expl ore di f f erent graphi c represent at i ons usi ng a spreadsheet program. Di scuss appropri at e
present at i ons f or di f f erent sort s of dat a.
Pract i se drawi ng si mpl e pl ans (not t o scal e), e.g. room pl ans, pi ece of equi pment .
82
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
Probability HD2/L1
show that some events are more
likely to occur than others
underst and t hat some event s are
i mpossi bl e
underst and t hat some event s are cert ai n t o
happen
know t hat some event s are more l i kel y t o
occur t han ot hers
underst and t he concept of possi bl e
out comes, e.g. t here are t wo possi bl e
out comes f or t he gender of a baby
underst and t hat some event s can happen i n
more t han one way, e.g. t here are t hree
possi bl e ways of get t i ng an odd number
wi t h t he t hrow of a di e
underst and t hat probabi l i t y i s an expressi on
of l i kel i hood, and use t erms such as a one
i n t wo chance
Example
Show t hat you are more l i kel y t o get an odd
number t han a si x wi t h a si ngl e t hrow of a
di e.
express the likelihood of an event
using fractions, decimals and
percentages with the probability
scale of 0 to 1
underst and t hat t he l i kel i hood of an event
i s measured on a scal e f rom 0 (i mpossi bl e)
t o 1 (cert ai n)
underst and t hat l i kel i hood (or probabi l i t y) i s
expressed as t he number of ways t he event
can happen di vi ded by t he t ot al number of
possi bl e out comes
underst and t hat l i kel i hood or probabi l i t y
can be wri t t en as a f ract i on, deci mal or
percent age, e.g. t he l i kel i hood t hat a coi n
wi l l l and heads-up i s 50%, .5 or
1
/ 2 t he
expressi on t here i s a f i f t y-f i f t y chance i s an
expressi on of l i kel i hood usi ng percent ages
Express as a percent age t he l i kel i hood t hat a
baby wi l l be a gi rl .
1
2
Part B: N1.1, N1.2, N1.3
Handling data
83
Sample activities
Di scuss event s i n t erms of l i kel i hood: what i s cert ai n t o happen; what cannot happen; what
mi ght happen (but i s i t l i kel y or unl i kel y)?
Di scuss probabi l i t y i n rel at i on t o t he i nsurance of cars, propert y, t ravel , e.g. why i s t he premi um
f or heal t h i nsurance f or a ski i ng hol i day more t han t hat f or a campi ng hol i day?
Consi der quest i ons such as: are you more l i kel y t o get a head i f you t oss a coi n, or t hrow a si x
wi t h a rol l of a di e? Why? Invest i gat e t he concept of possi bl e out comes.
Di scuss t he l i kel i hood of part i cul ar event s e.g. get t i ng a head on t he t oss of a coi n, get t i ng a si x
on t he t hrow of a di e, pi cki ng an ace f rom a pack of cards, havi ng a bi rt hday i n Jul y by:
(a) di scussi ng and recordi ng possi bl e out comes;
(b) i dent i f yi ng t he number of ways t he event can happen;
(c) descri bi ng t he l i kel i hood of t he event as a one i n t wo chance, a one i n si x chance, a 4 i n 52
chance, a 1 i n 12 chance, et c.
Mat ch event s t o probabi l i t i es usi ng 0 (cant happen), 1 (cert ai n t o happen), 0.5 (equal l y l i kel y
out come f i f t y-f i f t y chance), e.g. t hat I wi l l di e one day, t hat I shal l l i ve f orever, t hat a baby wi l l
be a boy.
Di scuss ways of compari ng t he l i kel i hood of event s usi ng exampl es i n t he previ ous sect i on,
e.g. how t o compare a one i n t wo chance wi t h a one i n si x; a 1 i n 12 chance wi t h a 4 i n 52.
Express t he probabi l i t i es i n t he exampl es above (and ot her si mpl e exampl es) as f ract i ons,
deci mal s and percent ages.
Use real or si mul at ed dat a t o cal cul at e probabi l i t i es, e.g. i f a phot ocopy machi ne i s out of act i on
on average 1 day i n 10, what i s t he probabi l i t y i t wi l l not work t oday? Usi ng rai nf al l st at i st i cs,
what i s t he chance of get t i ng wet goi ng out i n a gi ven mont h?
84
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
Data and statistical measures HD1/L2
extract discrete and continuous data
from tables, diagrams, charts and line
graphs
underst and how t o use scal es i n di agrams,
chart s and graphs
know how t o i nt erpret i nf ormat i on f rom bar
chart s, pi e chart s, and l i ne graphs wi t h
more t han one l i ne
Example
Ext ract i nf ormat i on f rom a hol i day brochure
(dat es, f l i ght t i mes, cost s, suppl ement s,
reduct i ons, i nsurance, et c.).
collect, organise and represent
discrete and continuous data in
tables, charts, diagrams and line
graphs
underst and t hat cont i nuous dat a i s
col l ect ed t hrough measurement
underst and t hat cont i nuous dat a can onl y
be col l ect ed t o a cert ai n degree of accuracy
know how t o choose a sui t abl e scal e t o f i t
t he dat a
l abel chart s, graphs, di agrams
Measure a pat i ent s t emperat ure at regul ar
i nt erval s and represent i t i n a l i ne graph.
Measure a babys wei ght at weekl y i nt erval s
over a peri od of t i me and record i t i n a l i ne
graph.
find the mean, median and mode, and
use them as appropriate to compare
two sets of data
underst and what i s meant by mean,
medi an and mode
underst and t hat each average i s usef ul f or
di f f erent purposes
Compare t he mean and medi an house pri ces
f rom l ocal dat a.
find the range and use it to describe
the spread within sets of data
underst and t hat t he range i s t he di f f erence
bet ween t he hi ghest and l owest val ues i n a
set of dat a
Compare t he rai nf al l i n t wo l ocat i ons.
Compare t he di st ri but i on of pay scal es i n t wo
organi sat i ons.
1
2
3
4
Part B: N2.1, N2.2, N2.3
Handling data
85
Sample activities
Di scuss t he di f f erence bet ween cont i nuous and di scret e dat a. A usef ul exampl e i s t hat t he si ze
of shoe someone wears i s di scret e, but t he l engt h of t hei r f oot i s cont i nuous.
Look at graphi cal represent at i ons of di scret e and cont i nuous dat a l i ne graphs f or cont i nuous
dat a, e.g. conversi on graphs.
Ext ract i nf ormat i on f rom t abl es i n pri ce l i st s, cat al ogues, brochures, web si t es.
Di scuss t he i nf ormat i on produced by l ocal counci l s t o expl ai n how t hei r money i s spent .
Exami ne Soci al Trends (The St at i onery Of f i ce) or ot her government publ i cat i ons.
Di scuss t he key el ement s of l i ne graphs. Look at t he use of di f f erent scal es and t hei r ef f ect on
t he graph. Look at t rends f rom t he sl ope of t he graph.
Take t emperat ure readi ngs over a peri od of t i me and represent t hem i n a l i ne graph.
Measure t he growt h of a pl ant over a peri od of t i me and represent i t i n a l i ne graph.
Col l ect and record dat a f rom exchange rat es or a part i cul ar share i ssue over a peri od of t i me.
Di spl ay t he dat a i n a t abl e or graph.
Use gi ven set s of dat a and represent t hem i n a sui t abl e f orm.
Expl ore di f f erent graphi c represent at i ons usi ng a spreadsheet program.
Di scuss t he use of mean, medi an and mode. Why i s t he medi an somet i mes a bet t er average
t han t he mean (e.g. average earni ngs may be di st ort ed by very hi gh sal ari es)? When mi ght mode
be used (e.g. t he t ruancy rat e agai nst t he age or year group)?
Compare set s of dat a usi ng dat a col l ect ed i n t he above act i vi t i es. Compare t hem wi t h t he dat a
col l ect ed by anot her person who has undert aken a si mi l ar survey. Compare t hem wi t h publ i shed
resul t s. Compare t hem wi t h t he perf ormance of currency or shares f rom a previ ous t i me peri od.
Ent er a f ormul a i n a spreadsheet t o cal cul at e t he mean of a set of dat a. Expl ore t he AVERAGE,
MEDIAN and MODE f unct i ons (under Insert : Funct i on, St at i st i cal i n Excel ).
Consi der t he use of range i n everyday l anguage, e.g. pri ce range, age range.
Compare t he range i n gi ven set s of dat a, e.g. t he range i n t he mont hl y rai nf al l at t wo di f f erent
pl aces (i f possi bl e, pl aces wi t h a si mi l ar annual t ot al but di f f erent range, e.g. Ni agara Fal l s and
Mexi co Ci t y).
Col l ect dat a of i nt erest and compare t he range, e.g. l ocal house pri ces wi t h t hose i n anot her
area, l ocal counci l t ax bands wi t h t hose of anot her counci l .
86
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
At t hi s l evel ,
adul t s can
read and understand
generate results
identify the range of possible
outcomes of combined events and
record the information using diagrams
or tables
underst and t hat event s are i ndependent
when t he out come of one does not
i nf l uence t he out come of anot her, e.g. t he
gender of a baby does not i nf l uence t he
gender of a second one
underst and t hat event s are combi ned when
t he out come depends on t he separat e
out come of each i ndependent event , e.g.
t he l i kel i hood t hat t wi ns wi l l bot h be gi rl s
record t he range of possi bl e out comes of
combi ned event s i n t ree di agrams or i n
t abl es
Example
Ident i f y t he possi bl e out comes of t he gender
of t wi ns.
Probability HD2/L2
1
Part B: N2.1, N2.2, N2.3
Handling data
87
Sample activities
Di scuss t he possi bl e out comes of an

event usi ng si mpl e exampl es such as
t ossi ng a coi n, pi cki ng a si ngl e pl ayi ng
card f rom a pack, t hrowi ng a di e, t he
possi bl e gender of a baby, t he out come
of a f oot bal l mat ch f or one t eam, et c.
Thi nk of exampl es where al l possi bl e

out comes can be i dent i f i ed. Cont rast
t hese wi t h exampl es where i t i s di f f i cul t
(t oo many possi bl e out comes) or
i mpossi bl e (out comes not known) t o
i dent i f y al l out comes.
Show how t he out comes of combi ned

event s can be recorded i n a t abl e and a
t ree di agram, e.g. t he out come of t ossi ng
t wo coi ns, t hrowi ng t wo di ce, t he
possi bl e genders of t wi ns, t ri pl et s, et c.
Use a spreadsheet or Word t abl e t o

record t he possi bl e out comes of
combi ned event s.
Recording outcomes in tables or diagrams
What is the most
likely score on the
roll of two dice?
What are the chances
of scoring 12?
Questions like these
can be answered by
setting out possible
outcomes in a table.
The top row of the
table shows the
possible outcomes of
the roll of the first
die; the first column
shows the possible
outcomes of the roll of the second die. The shaded part of the table
shows the combined score of the two dice for every possible
outcome. It is easy to see from the table that 7 is the most likely score
it occurs six times out of 36 possible outcomes. Therefore, the
probability of scoring 7 is 6 out of 36, or one-sixth. There is only one
possible way of scoring 12 (two sixes), therefore the probability of
scoring 12 is
1
/36. You are six times more likely to score 7 than 12.
A football team needs to win both its remaining matches to score
maximum points and win the league. What are the chances of them
winning both games?
The possible outcomes of the two matches can be shown in a tree
diagram. For each match there are three possible outcomes: win
(W), draw (D), lose (L). (Theoretically the outcomes are equally
likely, but this does not take into account current form,
previous results against opponents, injuries, team
selection, etc., which would be considered by
bookmakers giving odds calculations of
empirical probability using previous data are
more complex.) There are nine possible
outcomes of the combined events,
only one of which is winning
both games. Therefore, the
chances of winning both
games is 1 in 9 or
0.111 you could
say there is
approximately a
10% chance of
winning both
games, and thus
the league!
1 2 3 4 5 6
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
2 3 4 5 6 7 8
3 4 5 6 7 8 9
4 5 6 7 8 9 10
5 6 7 8 9 10 12
6 7 8 9 10 11 12
outcome on first die
o
u
t
c
o
m
e

o
n

s
e
c
o
n
d

d
i
e
d
ra
w
lose
w
in
w
i
n
w
in
win
draw
lo
s
e
first match
W, W
W, D
W, L
D, W
D, D
D, L
L, W
L, D
L, L second match
l
o
s
e
draw draw
lo
s
e
88
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
2-D, 3-D t wo-di mensi onal , t hree-di mensi onal . Havi ng t wo or t hree di mensi ons respect i vel y.
analogue clock an anal ogue cl ock usual l y has 12 equal di vi si ons around t he peri met er/ ci rcumf erence, l abel l ed 1 t o 12 t o represent
hours. It has t wo hands t hat rot at e about t he cent re. The hour hand compl et es one revol ut i on i n 12 hours, and t he
mi nut e hand compl et es one revol ut i on i n one hour.
angle a conf i gurat i on of t wo l i ne segment s meet i ng at a poi nt . The t erm i s of t en used f or t he measure of rot at i on f rom
one of t he l i ne segment s t o t he ot her. In t hi s sense, a ri ght angl e measures 90, an acut e angl e i s l ess t han 90,
an obt use angl e i s great er t han 90 but l ess t han 180, and a ref l ex angl e i s great er t han 180.
approximation a resul t t hat i s not exact but suf f i ci ent l y cl ose t o be usef ul i n a pract i cal cont ext . Verb: approxi mat e. Adverb:
approxi mat el y.
area a measure of a surf ace. Measured i n squares, e.g. square cent i met res (cm
2
), square met res (m
2
).
average somet i mes used synonymousl y wi t h ari t hmet i c mean . More wi del y, measures of average i ncl ude mean,
medianand mode.
bar chart a part i cul ar f orm of represent at i on of dat a. Frequenci es are represent ed by bars of equal wi dt h where t he
l engt hs are proport i onal t o t he f requenci es. The bars may be present ed vert i cal l y or hori zont al l y.
block graph a part i cul ar f orm of represent at i on of grouped dat a. In i t s si mpl est f orm, where t he cl ass i nt erval s are equal and
rect angl es have bases of t he same si ze, t he bl ock graph can be consi dered as a bar chart , and t he l engt h of each
rect angl e represent s t he t ot al i n each cl ass.
calculate efficiently use knowl edge of number syst ems and operat i ons, e.g. use mul t i pl i cat i on rat her t han repeat ed addi t i on. In t he
cont ext of usi ng t ool s, t o use avai l abl e operat i ons and f unct i ons, e.g. memory and const ant f unct i ons on a
cal cul at or, sum f ormul a i n a spreadsheet f or a range of cel l s, rat her t han addi t i on of i ndi vi dual cel l s.
capacity vol ume, i .e. a measure i n t hree-di mensi onal space, appl i ed t o l i qui ds, mat eri al s t hat can be poured, or cont ai ners.
Uni t s i ncl ude cubi c cent i met res (cm
3
), cubi c met res (m
3
). Note a l i t re i s 1000 cm
3
(t he vol ume of 1 kg of wat er).
cardinal number a count i ng number. Exampl e: one, t wo, t hree, et c.
circumference somet i mes used f or t he boundary of a ci rcl e but more usual l y t he l engt h of t he boundary. If t he radi us of a ci rcl e
i s r uni t s, and t he di amet er d uni t s, t hen t he ci rcumf erence i s 2r, or d uni t s.
combined events a set of i ndependent event s wi t h a si ngl e out come. An i ndependent event does not i nf l uence a subsequent
event : f or exampl e, one t hrow of a di e does not i nf l uence a second t hrow. Two t hrows of a di e i s a combi ned
event wi t h 36 possi bl e out comes (6 x 6). The probabi l i t y of t hrowi ng t wo si xes i s
1
/ 36.
common an adj ect i ve used t o descri be uni t s, i nst rument s, measures, dat e f ormat s, et c. t hat are wi del y used i n everyday
l i f e i n non-speci al i st cont ext s.
common fraction a f ract i on where t he numerat or and denomi nat or are bot h i nt egers. Al so known as a si mpl e or vul gar f ract i on.
commutative an operat i on
*
i s commut at i ve i f a
*
b b
*
a. Addi t i on and mul t i pl i cat i on are commut at i ve where 2 3
3 2 and 2 3 3 2. Subt ract i on and di vi si on are not commut at i ve.
composite shape an i rregul ar shape whi ch can be part i t i oned i nt o t wo or more regul ar or si mpl e shapes, e.g. an L-shape made up
of t wo rect angl es.
continuous data dat a resul t i ng f rom measurement , e.g. l engt h, t emperat ure. Cont i nuous dat a can t ake any val ue bet ween t wo
val ues, and can onl y be measured approxi mat el y t o a cert ai n degree of accuracy. Cont i nuous dat a are usual l y
represent ed by a l i ne.
cuboid a t hree-di mensi onal f i gure wi t h si x rect angul ar f aces. Adj oi ni ng edges and f aces are at ri ght angl es. (One pai r of
opposi t e f aces may be square.)
data i nf ormat i on of a quant i t at i ve nat ure consi st i ng of count s or measurement s: where t hey ref er t o i t ems or event s
t hat are separat e and can be count ed, t he dat a are di scret e; where t hey ref er t o quant i t i es such as l engt h or
capaci t y t hat are measured, t he dat a are cont i nuous. Si ngul ar: dat um.
Glossary
Glossary
89
decimal rel at i ng t o base t en. Most commonl y used synonymousl y wi t h deci mal f ract i on, where t he number of t ent hs,
hundredt hs, t housandt hs, et c. are represent ed as di gi t s f ol l owi ng a deci mal poi nt . The deci mal poi nt i s pl aced
at t he ri ght of t he uni t s col umn. Each col umn af t er t he deci mal poi nt i s a deci mal pl ace: f or exampl e, t he
deci mal f ract i on 0.275 i s sai d t o have t hree deci mal pl aces. The syst em of recordi ng wi t h a deci mal poi nt i s
deci mal not at i on.
digit one of t he symbols of a number syst em, most commonly t he symbols 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9. The number 29
is a t wo-digit number, f or example, but t here are t hree digit s in 2.95. The posit ion of t he digit s conveys place
value.
digital clock a di gi t al cl ock i s usual l y a 24-hour cl ock. It di spl ays t he t i me as hours and mi nut es past mi dni ght : f or exampl e,
f our-t hi rt y i n t he af t ernoon i s di spl ayed as 16:30. A 12-hour di gi t al cl ock di spl ays hours past mi dni ght and mi dday
and uses a.m. and p.m. t o di f f erent i at e.
direct proportion t wo quant i t i es or vari abl es are i n di rect proport i on when t hey i ncrease or decrease i n t he same rat i o: f or
exampl e, i f 5 oranges cost 1, and 10 cost 2, t hen cost i s i n di rect proport i on t o quant i t y t hey bot h doubl e, or
bot h hal ve; expressed mat hemat i cal l y as y kx where k i s const ant .
discrete data dat a resul t i ng f rom a count of separat e i t ems or event s, e.g. number of peopl e.
distribution i n recordi ng dat a, t he way i n whi ch val ues i n t he set of observat i ons are arranged.
distributive one operat i on i s di st ri but i ve over anot her
*
i f a (b
*
c) = (a b)
*
(a c). Exampl e: Mul t i pl i cat i on i s
di st ri but i ve over addi t i on where 4 (50 6) (4 50) (4 6). Mul t i pl i cat i on i s di st ri but i ve over
subt ract i on where 4 (50 2) (4 50) (4 2). Di vi si on i s not di st ri but i ve over ot her operat i ons.
equivalent fraction f ract i on wi t h t he same val ue as anot her, e.g.
6
/ 12
3
/ 6
1
/ 2; t hese f ract i ons are equi val ent .
estimate t o arri ve at a rough answer by cal cul at i ng wi t h sui t abl e approxi mat i ons f or numbers or, i n measurement , by usi ng
previ ous experi ence.
evaluate t o work out t he val ue of an expressi on when numbers have been subst i t ut ed f or vari abl es.
(an expressi on)
event used i n probabi l i t y t o descri be t he out come of an act i on or happeni ng.
everyday an adj ect i ve used t o descri be numbers, measures, uni t s, i nst rument s, et c. t hat f al l wi t hi n t he dai l y l i ved
experi ence of most peopl e i n non-speci al i st cont ext s.
expression a mat hemat i cal st at ement i nvol vi ng vari abl es wri t t en i n words or symbol s, e.g. l engt h wi dt h, a b (or ab).
factor when an i nt eger can be expressed as t he product or t wo or more ot her i nt egers, t hese are f act ors of t he f i rst .
Exampl e: 24 6 4, so 6 and 4 are f act ors of 24. A pri me f act or i s a f act or t hat i s a pri me number.
familiar descri bes cont ext s, si t uat i ons, numbers, measures, i nst rument s, et c. of whi ch t he l earner has some pri or
knowl edge or experi ence.
formula any i dent i t y, general rul e or mat hemat i cal l aw. Pl ural : f ormul ae.
frequency table a t abl e f or a set of observat i ons showi ng how f requent l y each event or quant i t y occurs.
grouped data observed dat a ari si ng f rom count s and grouped i nt o non-overl appi ng i nt erval s, e.g. number of peopl e i n di f f erent
age-groups wi t h i nt erval s 09, 1019, 2029, 3039, 4049, et c.
imperial unit a uni t of measurement hi st ori cal l y used i n t he Uni t ed Ki ngdom and ot her Engl i sh-speaki ng count ri es. Uni t s
i ncl ude i nch, f oot , yard, mi l e, acre, ounce, pound, st one, t on, pi nt , quart and gal l on. Now l argel y repl aced by
met ri c uni t s.
integer any of t he posi t i ve or negat i ve whol e numbers i ncl udi ng zero, e.g. .2, 1, 0, 1, 2.
inverse operations operat i ons t hat , when t hey are combi ned, l eave t he ent i t y on whi ch t hey operat e unchanged: f or exampl e,
addi t i on and subt ract i on are i nverse operat i ons, e.g. 5 6 6 5; mul t i pl i cat i on and di vi si on are i nverse
operat i ons, e.g. 6 10 10 6.
line graph a di agram showi ng a rel at i onshi p bet ween t wo vari abl es.
90
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
line symmetry al so ref l ect i ve symmet ry. The propert y of a shape where one hal f i s a ref l ect i on of t he ot her; t he mi rror l i ne i s
t he axi s of symmet ry or l i ne of symmet ry.
mass a f undament al charact eri st i c of a body, rel at i ng t o t he amount of mat t er wi t hi n i t . Mass di f f ers f rom wei ght , t he
f orce wi t h whi ch a body i s at t ract ed t owards t he eart hs cent re. Under cert ai n condi t i ons a body can become
wei ght l ess, whereas mass i s const ant .
mean a t ype of average. The ari t hmet i c mean i s t he sum of quant i t i es di vi ded by t he number of t hem: f or exampl e, t he
ari t hmet i c mean of 5, 6, 14, 15 and 45 i s (5 6 14 15 45) 5 17.
median a t ype of average. The medi an i s t he mi ddl e number or val ue when al l are arranged i n ascendi ng order: f or
exampl e, t he medi an of 5, 6, 14, 15 and 45 i s 14. Where t here i s an even number of val ues, t he ari t hmet i c mean
of t he t wo mi ddl e val ues i s cal cul at ed: f or exampl e, t he medi an of 5, 6, 7, 8, 14 and 45 i s (7 8) 2 7.5.
metric rel at i ng t o t he deci mal syst em of measurement based on t he met re, ki l ogram and second.
metric unit uni t of measurement i n t he deci mal syst em. Met ri c uni t s i ncl ude met re, cent i met re, mi l l i met re, ki l omet re, gram
and ki l ogram.
mixed fraction a whol e number and a f ract i onal part expressed as a common f ract i on, e.g. 1
2
/ 3 i s a mi xed f ract i on; al so known
as a mi xed number.
mixed number a whol e number and a f ract i onal part expressed as a common f ract i on, e.g. 1
2
/ 3 i s a mi xed number; al so known
as a mi xed f ract i on.
mode a measure of average t he most f requent l y occurri ng i n a set of dat a.
multiple any number t hat has a gi ven number as a f act or i s cal l ed a mul t i pl e of t hat f act or.
Exampl e: 14 7 2, 49 7 7 and 70 7 10. So 14, 49 and 70 are al l mul t i pl es of 7.
negative number a number l ess t han 0.
non-standard unit uni t of measure whi ch i s not f i xed or wi del y agreed, e.g. pace, cup.
number bond a pai r of numbers wi t h a part i cul ar t ot al , e.g. number bonds t o t en, al l pai rs of numbers wi t h t he t ot al 10.
numeral a symbol used t o denot e a number. The Roman numeral s I, V, X, L, C, D and M represent t he numbers
one, f i ve, t en, f i f t y, one hundred, f i ve hundred and one t housand. The Arabi c numeral s 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and
9 are used i n t he Hi ndu-Arabi c syst em gi vi ng numbers i n t he f orm t hat i s wi del y used t oday.
operation a means of combi ni ng numbers, set s or ot her el ement s. Addi t i on, subt ract i on, mul t i pl i cat i on and di vi si on are f our
operat i ons on numbers.
ordinal number a t erm t hat descri bes a posi t i on wi t hi n an order, e.g. f i rst , second, t hi rd, f ourt h . . . t went i et h, et c.
parallel al ways equi di st ant . Paral l el l i nes never meet , however f ar t hey are produced. Paral l el l i nes must l i e i n t he same
pl ane.
pattern a syst emat i c arrangement of numbers, shapes or ot her el ement s accordi ng t o a rul e.
percentage a f ract i on expressed as t he number of part s per hundred and recorded usi ng t he not at i on number%, e.g. one hal f
can be expressed as 50%, t he whol e can be expressed as 100%.
perimeter t he l engt h of t he boundary of a cl osed f i gure.
pi () t he symbol used t o denot e t he rat i o of t he ci rcumf erence of a ci rcl e t o i t s di amet er. Approxi mat el y 3.142.
pictogram a part i cul ar f orm of represent at i on of dat a. Sui t abl e pi ct ures/ symbol s/ i cons are used t o represent obj ect s. For
l arge numbers one symbol may represent a number of obj ect s; a part symbol t hen represent s a rough proport i on
of t he number.
pie-chart a part i cul ar f orm of present at i on of dat a. A ci rcl e i s di vi ded i nt o sect ors. The f requency or amount of each
quant i t y i s proport i onal t o t he angl e at t he cent re of t he ci rcl e.
place value t he val ue of a di gi t t hat rel at es t o i t s posi t i on or pl ace i n a number, e.g. i n 1481 t he di gi t s represent t housands,
hundreds, t ens and uni t s respect i vel y. The val ue of t he 1 on t he l ef t i s one t housand whi l e t he val ue of t he 1 on
t he ri ght i s one.
prime number a pri me number has exact l y t wo f act ors, i t sel f and 1. Exampl es: 2 (f act ors 2, 1), 3 (f act ors 3, 1); 51 i s not pri me
(f act ors 51, 17, 3, 1), and 1 i t sel f i s not consi dered a pri me number.
Glossary
91
probability the likelihood of an event happening; a measure of certainty. Probability is expressed on a scale from 0 to 1. Where
an event cannot happen, its probability is 0 and, where it is certain, its probability is 1. The probability of scoring 1
with a fair die is
1
/ 6.
product t he resul t of mul t i pl i cat i on, e.g. t he product of 2, 3 and 4 i s 24 (2 3 4).
property any at t ri but e, e.g. one propert y of a square i s t hat al l si des are equal .
quadrilateral a pol ygon wi t h f our si des and f our i nt eri or angl es.
range a measure of spread i n st at i st i cs; t he di f f erence bet ween t he great est and t he l east i n a set of numeri cal dat a.
ratio a compari son of quant i t i es of t he same ki nd, wri t t en a:b; f or exampl e, a mi xt ure made up of t wo i ngredi ent s i n
t he rat i o 3:1 i s 3 part s of t he f i rst i ngredi ent t o 1 part of t he second; t he f i rst i ngredi ent makes up
3
/ 4 of t he t ot al
mi xt ure, t he second makes up
1
/ 4 of t he t ot al .
rectangle a quadri l at eral (f our-si ded pol ygon) wi t h f our ri ght angl es. The pai rs of opposi t e si des are equal . If al l si des are
equal t he rect angl e i s a square. Adj ect i ve: rect angul ar.
regular a pol ygon i s a regul ar pol ygon i f al l t he si des are equal and al l t he i nt ernal angl es are equal , e.g. a regul ar
quadri l at eral i s a square. When ref erri ng t o a shape, t he adj ect i ve regul ar ref ers t o common 2-D or 3-D shapes
whose areas can be f ound usi ng a f ormul a, e.g. a rect angl e, ci rcl e, cyl i nder.
right angle one quart er of a compl et e t urn. An angl e of 90 degrees. An acut e angl e i s l ess t han one ri ght angl e. An obt use
angl e i s great er t han one ri ght angl e but l ess t han t wo. A ref l ex angl e i s great er t han t wo ri ght angl es.
round (verb) t o express a number or measurement t o a requi red degree of accuracy, e.g. 543 rounded t o t he nearest 10 i s 540.
scale a measuri ng devi ce usual l y consi st i ng of poi nt s on a l i ne wi t h equal i nt erval s.
sequence a successi on of t erms f ormed accordi ng t o a rul e, i n whi ch t here i s a def i ni t e rel at i on bet ween one t erm and t he
next and bet ween each t erm and i t s posi t i on i n t he sequence, e.g. 1, 4, 9, 16, 25, et c.
sign a symbol used t o denot e an operat i on, e.g. addi t i on si gn , subt ract i on si gn , mul t i pl i cat i on si gn , di vi si on
si gn . In t he case of di rect ed numbers, t he posi t i ve or negat i ve si gn i ndi cat es t he di rect i on i n whi ch t he
number i s measured f rom t he ori gi n al ong t he number l i ne.
simple an adj ect i ve appl i ed t o numbers, i nf ormat i on, di agrams, chart s, et c. t hat make l i mi t ed demands on t he l earner,
f or exampl e: smal l whol e numbers; numbers t hat are easi er t o work wi t h, e.g. mul t i pl es of 2, 5 10, 100;
uncompl i cat ed represent at i ons of l i mi t ed amount s of dat a, et c.
square number a number t hat can be expressed as t he product of t wo equal numbers, e.g. 36 = 6 6, and so 36 i s a square
number.
standard unit uni t s t hat are agreed t hroughout a communi t y, e.g. t he met re i s a st andard uni t of l engt h. Non-st andard uni t s are
not wi del y agreed.
straightforward descri bes i nf ormat i on, subj ect s and mat eri al s t hat l earners of t en meet i n t hei r work, st udi es or ot her act i vi t i es.
substantial activity an act i vi t y t hat i ncl udes a number of rel at ed t asks, where t he resul t s of one t ask wi l l af f ect t he carryi ng out of
t he ot hers.
substitute t o assi gn a val ue t o a vari abl e.
symbol a l et t er, numeral or ot her mark t hat represent s a number, an operat i on or anot her mat hemat i cal i dea: f or
exampl e, V i s t he Roman symbol f or f i ve, > i s t he symbol f or i s great er t han .
symmetry a f i gure has symmet ry i f part s can be i nt erchanged wi t hout changi ng t he whol e. A geomet ri c f i gure may have
ref l ect i ve symmet ry or rot at i onal symmet ry. Adj ect i ve: symmet ri cal .
system an agreed syst em of measure i n whi ch uni t s are def i ned and are i n a f i xed rel at i onshi p t o each ot her.
(of measure)
92
The Adult Numeracy
Core Curriculum
table an orderl y arrangement of i nf ormat i on, numbers or l et t ers, usual l y i n rows and col umns.
tally t o make marks t o represent obj ect s count ed.
tessellation a surf ace i n a pl ane covered by t he t ransf ormat i on (t ransl at i on, ref l ect i on, rot at i on) of a si ngl e shape. Verb:
t essel l at e.
unit one. A st andard used i n measuri ng, e.g. a met re i s a met ri c uni t of l engt h.
unit fraction a f ract i on t hat has 1 as t he numerat or and whose denomi nat or i s a non-zero i nt eger, e.g.
1
/ 2,
1
/ 3.
volume a measure i n t hree-di mensi onal space, measured i n cubes, e.g. cubi c cent i met res (cm
3
), cubi c met res (m
3
).
weight t he f orce wi t h whi ch a body i s at t ract ed t owards t he eart hs cent re. In non-sci ent i f i c cont ext s, of t en used
synonymousl y wi t h mass (t hough t echni cal l y di f f erent ). Met ri c uni t s of wei ght i ncl ude ki l ograms (kg) and grams (g).
References
93
Basic Skills Agency (1999) Lit eracy, Leaving School and Jobs: t he ef f ect of poor basic skills
on employment in dif f erent age groups. London: Basic Skills Agency.
Depart ment f or Educat ion and Employment (1998) The Nat ional Lit eracy St rat egy
f ramework f or t eaching. London: Df EE.
Depart ment f or Educat ion and Employment (1998) The Nat ional Numeracy St rat egy
f ramework f or t eaching. London: Df EE.
Depart ment f or Educat ion and Employment (1999) A Fresh St art Improving Lit eracy and
Numeracy (The report of t he working group chaired by Sir Claus Moser). London: Df EE.
Depart ment f or Educat ion and Employment / Qualif icat ions and Curriculum Aut horit y (2000)
The Nat ional Curriculum handbook f or primary t eachers in England (key st ages 1 and 2).
London: The St at ionery Of f ice.
Depart ment f or Educat ion and Employment / Qualif icat ions and Curriculum Aut horit y (2000)
The Nat ional Curriculum handbook f or secondary t eachers in England (key st ages 3 and 4).
London: The St at ionery Of f ice.
Inst it ut e f or Employment St udies (1993) Basic Skills and Jobs. London: Adult Lit eracy and
Basic Skills Unit .
Qualif icat ions and Curriculum Aut horit y (2000) Nat ional St andards f or Adult Lit eracy and
Numeracy. London: QCA.
References
For further information contact:
The Basic Skills Agency, Commonwealth House,
1-19 New Oxford Street, London WC1A 1NU
Tel: 020 7405 4017 Fax: 020 7440 6626
email: enquiries@basic-skills.co.uk
www.basic-skills.co.uk
For further copies contact:
The Basic Skills Agency
Admail 524
London WC1A 1BR
Tel: 0870 600 2400 Fax: 0870 600 2401

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corecurriculum

the new key skills units of communication and application of number

the revised National Curriculum for English and mathematics introduced in

use information from diagnostic assessment to identify learners skills, both

speak, listen and respond

read and comprehend

understand and use mathematical information

calculate and manipulate mathematical information

interpret results and communicate mathematical information.

57 per cent of men in their twenties

72 per cent of men in their thirties

74 per cent of women in their forties.

those with Entry level skills had access to 50 per cent;

those with Level 1 skills had access to 75 per cent.

numberincludes numbers and the number system, and calculations

measures, shape and spaceincludes common measures of money, time,

handling dataincludes data and statistical measures, and probability.

citizen and community

economic activity, including paid and unpaid work

domestic and everyday life

education and training

using ICT in social roles

I couldnt book holidays. I

Understanding and using

Count i t ems, re-arrange t hem and count

Count on i n 1p coi ns st art i ng f rom a

Wri t e a short l i st i n Word, e.g. a

Share and compare number words to 10 in

Match numbers in words and numerals.

Practise finding numbers on different

Read numbers in everyday material and

Match ordinal and cardinal numbers.

Write ordinal numbers next to a sequence, such as a list of instructions.

Fill in the missing numbers in a sequence.

Place a jumbled sequence of numbers in order.

Ask l earners what di f f erent words t hey use f or addi t i on.

Fi nd al l t he pai rs of numbers wi t h t ot al s t o 10, usi ng coi ns i f needed.

Use a number l i ne t o pract i se addi t i on by count i ng on.

Ask l earners what di f f erent words t hey

Expl ore di f f erent st rat egi es f or ment al

Use obj ect s or coi ns t o subt ract al l t he

Compare t he resul t s of subt ract i ng

Use a number l i ne t o pract i se subt ract i on

Use a cal cul at or t o check any cal cul at i ons at t hi s l evel .

Expl ore st rat egi es f or addi ng and

Mat ch cards wi t h subt ract i on f act s t o

Break down numbers and use t he

Appl y st rat egi es t o sol vi ng probl ems wi t h

Di scuss mul t i pl i cat i on, usi ng vocabul ary

Wri t e repeat ed addi t i on sums as

Ext end sequences, f i l l i n t he gaps, usi ng

Mat ch pai rs of numbers whi ch are

Count t he number of obj ect s or i t ems i n a l i st .

Compl et e number l i nes t o pract i se count i ng i n t wos or t ens.

Wri t e t wo-di gi t numbers as t he sum of t ens and uni t s, e.g. 36 30 6.

Mat ch numbers i n f i gures t o numbers i n words.

Fi l l i n mi ssi ng numbers i n a sequence and on a number l i ne (whol e, odd, even numbers).

Mat ch words t o symbol s.

Pract i se usi ng hal vi ng pat t erns, e.g. 64 32 16.

Round pri ces i n pence t o t he nearest 10p.

Mat ch words t o symbol s, usi ng a range of vocabul ary.

Mat ch word probl ems t o wri t t en cal cul at i ons.

Use a cal cul at or t o check any cal cul at i ons at t hi s l evel .

Wri t e t hree-di gi t numbers as sums of hundreds, t ens and uni t s,