Number Lines
There are a number of number line virtual manipulatives online, we have include a few select virtual ones here.
Web Link: Number Line | Manipulatives | Coolmath4Kids
Flexibility: This is, by far, the most advanced number line virtual manipulative on this listing. Is has the following functionality.
Lines can be whole numbers with intervals of 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, 100 or a custom jump.
Lines can be fractions with intervals of 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, 1/5, 1/6, 1/8, 1/9, 1/10th, or 10/12
Lines can be decimals with intervals of 0.001, 0.01, 0.1, 0.5, 0.25, or 0.125.
Lines can also have no numbers and just have the interval marks. Teachers can add a mark on these lines.
There is also an option to hide numbers for when students are working with the number line.
Negative numbers can be toggled on or off.
There appears to be a maximum of 100 intervals that can be displayed on the number line.
Jumps can either dynamically show the number of intervals jumped, leave a space for students to guess, or show nothing at all. The type of jump will affect all jumps, not only the one selected, which is a limitation.
There is a number pad and pencil to add information to the canvas.
User Interfaces: Mouse and touchpad friendly. Touch-friendly.
Browsers: Works with all major browsers
Web Link: Number Line, by The Math Learning Center
Flexibility: This app has the following functionalities:
The number line can be set to whole numbers. Either 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, 100, or custom intervals.
The number line can be set to fractions with 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, 1/5, 1/6, 1/8, 1/9, 1/10/ or 1/12 intervals.
The number line can be set to decimals with 0.1, 0.01, 0.001, 0.5, 0.25, or 0.125 intervals.
The numbers on the line can be hidden and shown with a click.
The number line can have custom numbers set on it with changing intervals.
The number line can also be set to one with no number and ticks only or just a line.
Spacing can be changed for the intervals as well.
Many jumps can be added, and the size of the jump shown or hidden.
There is a number pad, textbox, and pen to add information to the canvas. The number pad and textbox do not format fractions well. Same with exponents.
The canvas can be shared with an 8 digit alpha-numeric code that remains active as long as it has been used in the last 18 months.
User Interfaces: Mouse and touchpad friendly. Touch-friendly.
Browsers: Works with all major browsers
Web Link: Polypad – Virtual Manipulatives – Mathigon
Flexibility: Polypad, by going to Numbers and Number Line, allows users to add a number line to the canvas. The number lines can be extended or shrunk as necessary. Users can say what the starting number is, how large the intervals (step size) are, the width between intervals, and the number of divisions in each interval. While this number line is simple, it can be combined with other objects in polypad such as number tiles (algebra tiles), number bars (Cuisenaire rods), and anything else that the applet has to offer. There is also a pen and textbox option to add information to the canvas. Teachers can also save lines they have created for later use or to be shared with students.
User Interfaces: Mouse and touchpad friendly. Touch-friendly.
Browsers: Works with all major browsers
Web Link: Number Line » Toy Theater
Flexibility: This applet combines a number line with Cuisenaire rods. It provides three empty spaces above the number line to use for the rods. The number line can be dragged from -100 to +100. One downside is that only about 14 numbers can be seen on the screen at any one time and there is no way to change this. The upside is that the rods move with the number line.
User Interfaces: Mouse and touchpad friendly. Touch-friendly.
Browsers: Works with all major browsers
Web Link: Number Line
Flexibility: This is a very simple number line. You can select the starting and the ending number. Clicking on the number line will set an initial point, and then each subsequent click will create a jump with the number of the jump displayed. There is an option to disabled the number showing for the jumps.
User Interfaces: Mouse and touchpad friendly. Touch-friendly.
Browsers: Works with all major browsers