The greater than symbol (>) and the less than symbol (<) show which of two numbers is bigger. The number on the open, wide side of the symbol is the larger one; the number on the pointed side is the smaller one.
These symbols trip up a lot of young learners, not because the concept is hard, but because remembering which way the symbol points takes practice. That’s where visual tricks like the crocodile method come in.
Jump to a section:
- What Do the Greater Than and Less Than Symbols Mean?
- The Crocodile (or “Alligator”) Method: How It Works
- Does the Crocodile Method Actually Work?
- Other Ways to Teach Greater Than and Less Than
- The Research Behind Number Comparison
- Simple Activities to Practice at Home
- How Magrid Teaches Number Comparison
- FAQ
What Do the Greater Than and Less Than Symbols Mean?
Both symbols compare two numbers and show which one is bigger:
- Greater than (>): the number on the left is larger. For example, 7 > 4 means 7 is greater than 4.
- Less than (<): the number on the left is smaller. For example, 3 < 9 means 3 is less than 9.
The concept itself, that one quantity can be bigger or smaller than another, isn’t the hard part for most children. What actually causes confusion is remembering which direction each symbol points. That’s the piece a visual trick can fix.
The Crocodile (or “Alligator”) Method: How It Works
The most common way to teach these symbols turns the shape itself into a hungry animal, most often called a crocodile, though in the US it’s usually known as an alligator.
The story is simple: the crocodile is always hungry, and it wants to eat the bigger number. Its mouth, the open side of the symbol, always turns toward the larger value. In 8 > 5, the wide-open mouth faces the 8, because 8 is the number worth eating. Once a child pictures the symbol as a mouth rather than an abstract mark, the direction tends to stick.
Does the Crocodile Method Actually Work?
It works well for one specific job: helping a child remember which way a symbol points. Where it falls short, and where some elementary math educators have pushed back, is that it doesn’t teach a child anything about the actual size of the numbers involved. A child can correctly point the crocodile’s mouth at 8 without truly understanding that 8 represents a larger quantity than 5.
The honest way to use it is as a memory shortcut for the symbol itself, alongside other methods, like a number line, that build real number sense. Used on its own, and past the age where the underlying comparison skill should already be solid, it can become a crutch rather than a bridge.
Other Ways to Teach Greater Than and Less Than
The crocodile isn’t the only trick, and mixing methods tends to work better than relying on just one.
The Arrow Method
Some children find it easier to picture both symbols as arrows rather than mouths. The arrowhead always points toward the smaller number, the opposite direction from where the crocodile’s mouth would face. Either mental image describes the same rule; some kids simply respond better to one than the other.
The L-Shape Hand Trick
Holding the left hand up with the thumb and index finger extended forms an “L” shape, a physical reminder that the less-than symbol looks like a sideways L. It’s a simple trick that gives children something tactile to fall back on, especially when they need a quick reminder during independent work or a test.
Using a Number Line
Rather than teaching the symbol first, a number line teaches the underlying idea: a number further to the right is always bigger. Once a child can place two numbers on a line confidently, the symbol becomes a shorthand for something they already understand, not an arbitrary rule to memorize.
The Research Behind Number Comparison
The skill underneath all of this, being able to quickly and accurately compare two numbers, is more than a classroom exercise. Research has repeatedly linked it to broader mathematical achievement. A study following primary school children found that performance on a simple symbolic number comparison task explained real differences in arithmetic competence, even after accounting for other factors (Nosworthy, Bugden, Archibald, Evans, & Ansari, 2013). A separate review of the wider evidence base reached a similar conclusion: how well a child processes symbolic numerical magnitude is closely tied to individual differences in mathematical skill (De Smedt, Noël, Gilmore, & Ansari, 2013).
In other words, teaching a child to compare 7 and 4 confidently isn’t a small, isolated skill. It’s one of the early building blocks that later mathematics tends to rest on.
Try Magrid for free and see how the same visual approach applies to number comparison.
Simple Activities to Practice at Home
None of these need the crocodile story at all, which is exactly the point: they build the number sense underneath it.
- Compare snack piles. Two small piles of crackers or grapes, ask which pile has more, then let your child eat the “winner” as a small reward.
- Play a “highest card wins” game. Each player flips a card, whoever has the bigger number keeps both. It’s comparison practice disguised as a game kids already like.
- Compare house numbers on a walk. Ask which house number is bigger as you pass by, a quick, no-prep way to practice comparison in the real world.
- Build towers and compare heights. Two block towers of different sizes give a physical, visual sense of “more” and “less” before any symbol enters the picture.
How Magrid Teaches Number Comparison
Magrid’s newest Symbolic Number Comparison activity uses the same internationally recognised open-mouth concept behind the crocodile method, but keeps it entirely visual: children compare quantities and place the correct symbol without needing to read or hear any instructions first.
This activity doesn’t stand alone. It sits at the end of a progression that starts well before any symbol appears on screen. Children first practise Select the Largest, choosing between visual groups of objects, then Choose the Largest Group, comparing quantities organised into tens and leftover pieces, and Create Equal Groups, adjusting two sets until they balance. Only once a child is comfortable comparing real quantities does Magrid introduce the greater than and less than symbols themselves, so the symbol becomes a shorthand for something already understood, not a new rule to memorise from scratch.
This mirrors Magrid’s broader approach, grounded in over a decade of cognitive science research at the University of Luxembourg: give a child a structured, visual way to build a concept first, then let the formal notation follow naturally once the underlying number sense is already there.
Try Magrid for free and give your child a structured, visual way to build number sense from the start.
