Which numbers are used?

To 10 and 20 for the infant classes, to 100 for First and Second Class, and to 1000 from Third Class.

Why are some pairs so close?

Many pairs differ by a little or share digits, like 47 and 74, so children compare tens before ones instead of guessing.

Are some pairs equal?

Yes, a few in each sheet, so = gets used too.

Comparing Numbers Worksheets: Greater Than, Less Than, Equal To

Place value in action

Comparing two-digit numbers is really a place value question: which has more tens? Pair this page with place value worksheets.

Irish curriculum links

InfantsStage 1 Numeration and counting: small quantities can be compared, and seen at a glance, without counting every item.
1st–2nd ClassStage 2 Place value and base ten: a digit’s value depends on its place. The continuum has children comparing two-digit numbers in words and with <, > and =.
Later onFurther along the continuum, children compare three-digit numbers, first to 199 and then to 999, and then larger whole numbers.

In Irish classrooms the symbols < and > usually come after plenty of talk: “more than”, “less than”, “the same as”. The NCCA toolkit expects children to use both the words and the symbols, so ask for a sentence as well as a symbol now and then.

Pairs with the same digits, like 47 and 74, are a good test of place value. Ask children to say “4 tens and 7 units” or “4 tens and 7 ones” before they choose a symbol. Both phrases are used in Irish schools, and the toolkit uses both.

Summarised in our own words from the Primary Mathematics Curriculum (2023) and the NCCA Mathematics Toolkit.