First Grade's Favorite Base Ten Activities: Place Value Stacking Cups

If you’re searching for engaging and hands-on base ten activities for your first grade classroom, you’ll love our Place Value Stacking Cups. This interactive activity uses number-labeled cups and base ten block visuals to help students understand tens and ones in a way that’s both visual and tactile. Teaching place value doesn’t have to be boring — in fact, it can be stacked with fun!

Be sure to check out 20 Most Popular Place Value Games and Printables after you grab these stacking cups!

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What Are Place Value Stacking Cups?

Place Value Stacking Cups are a classroom activity designed to build foundational number sense. Students are given a set of paper cups labeled with different two-digit numbers. Using printable task cards with base ten block illustrations (representing tens and ones), students match the correct number to the image — then stack the corresponding cup in the correct position to match the picture.

I recommend using these cups to meet 1st grade math standard: 1.NBT.B.2: Understand that the two digits of a two-digit number represent amounts of tens and ones and subsequent place value standards. The cups can also be used with kindergarten and early second grade.

This activity not only reinforces counting and number identification but also strengthens your students’ understanding of the base ten system. And let’s face it, anything involving stacking cups is an instant win in the classroom!

Why This Is One of Our Favorite Base Ten Activities

• ✅ Low Prep: Print out the 20 challenges, laminate if you want, and quickly write the numbers corresponding to each set on your 34 paper cups. We use 5 colors to correspond to the 5 sets, which makes clean up a SNAP.
• ✅ Hands-on, engaging learning: Kids physically manipulate and stack cups, helping them internalize place value concepts. I've taught hundreds of kids, and there has never been a single student who didn't want to stack cups to learn.
• ✅ Visual support: Each picture card includes clear base ten block images so students can easily “see” the number.
• ✅ Self-checking: You can make this an independent math center because every set comes with an answer key!
• ✅ Differentiated: The 5 sets get progressively harder, so you can provide support for those who need it and a challenge for those showing mastery.

How It Works

1. Print the base ten block task cards. There are 5 sets of 4 challenges each, meaning 20 UNIQUE challenges for kids to complete. I like to laminate them with the answer keys on the back.
2. Label paper cups with numbers. Each set has its own set of numbers listed on the bottom of the activity sheet. (I've tried lots of cups, and these are my favorite.)
3. Students select a set of cups and activities, identify the number it shows using the tens and ones blocks, and find the matching cup.
4. Then they stack the cups as they go!

Simple setup, powerful learning.

Download your new favorite base ten activities: Stacking Cups

Base ten activities are essential for developing number sense in the early grades, but they don’t have to be repetitive or worksheet-heavy. Our Place Value Stacking Cups bring a new level of excitement to place value practice and make math centers something your students look forward to.

Ready to stack up the learning? Grab your Place Value Stacking Cups below! Bundle to save.

Extend the Fun with More Cup Stacking Activities!

If your students love Place Value Stacking Cups, don’t stop there. We’ve created a whole series of cup stacking resources that turn skill practice into exciting, interactive play:

• ➕ Addition Stacking Cups
• ➖ Subtraction Stacking Cups
• 🌟 Silent E Word Cups
• 🔤 Blends Stacking Cups
• 🥤 The Original CVC Word Stacking Cups

Each one is designed with the same hands-on, stackable format that makes learning stick. Fun fact: the addition and subtraction sets use the SAME CUPS. So the prep is halved!