L5 Identify Factors and Factor Pairs

This interactive Year 4 Maths lesson introduces students to factors and factor pairs, building on prior learning in multiplication, division, addition, and subtraction from Year 4 and the Year 3 summer term. The lesson begins by revisiting arrays for multiplication, helping children understand that numbers can be arranged in multiple ways depending on their factors. Students explore the number 12 through arrays and discuss different arrangements with partners, linking this to the concept of factors. The introduction focuses on identifying factors and factor pairs. Using visual aids such as factor bugs, children discover that the factors of 12 are 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 12, and the factor pairs are the combinations of two numbers that multiply to 12 (1 × 12, 2 × 6, 3 × 4). Students then complete factor bugs for numbers such as 18, 72, and 30, developing a systematic approach to finding all possible factors and pairs. The main activity involves solving word problems using sticky labels, where children apply their understanding of factors in real-world contexts, such as arranging items in rows and columns. This encourages logical reasoning and ensures students consider practical solutions, not just theoretical factor pairs. At least four problems are completed per student. The plenary consolidates learning through a hands-on array problem involving planting bulbs in rows and columns, demonstrating how to apply factors to spatial arrangements. Key questions throughout the lesson reinforce understanding, including checking divisibility, identifying all factor pairs, and linking factors to multiplication facts. This lesson is ideal for primary educators seeking an engaging and practical approach to teaching factors and factor pairs, strengthening arithmetic skills, logical reasoning, and problem-solving confidence in Year 4 students.