This article examines the importance of developing the notion of place value as a rate of ten. In exploring how to nurture this concept, the author looks at the role of the language of value, the problem types of multistep multiplication and addition along with measurement division, each with ten as an organizing unit, as well as strategically crafted number strings to foster thinking in scale. The work described in this article is drawn from instructional and research work in classrooms during the past six years.