What is this skill?
First grade word problems are short stories that need adding or subtracting within 20, such as "Maya has 9 stickers. Her friend gives her 6 more. How many does she have now?" or "Leo had 14 marbles and gave away 5. How many are left?" Children read or listen to the story, decide what is happening, and solve it with objects, drawings or equations.
Over the year, problems get more varied. Some ask for a total, some for what is left, some for a missing part ("Maya had some stickers, got 6 more, and now has 15") and some compare two amounts ("how many more does Leo have than Sofia?").
Why it matters
Word problems are where math meets real life. They teach children to turn a situation into a number sentence, which is the main reason we learn arithmetic at all. A child who can add 9 + 6 but cannot tell whether a story calls for adding or subtracting has the tools but not the judgement to use them.
Story problems also build reading comprehension and the habit of checking whether an answer makes sense. If a child gives away marbles and ends up with more than they started with, something has gone wrong, and noticing that is an important skill. Learning to slow down, picture the story and estimate before calculating are habits that serve children well in every later grade.
Common mistakes
- Grabbing the numbers and adding them without reading the story. Keywords like "more" can mislead: "Leo has 5 more than Sofia" may need subtraction. Encourage your child to picture what is happening first.
- Relying on keyword lists ("left means subtract"). Keywords are a weak shortcut; understanding the action in the story works better and keeps working in later grades.
- Not checking whether the answer is sensible. Ask "Does that make sense?" after each problem.
How to help at home
- Make up short stories about your child's life, toys and food, and solve them with real objects. "You have 12 grapes. You eat 4. How many are left?"
- Ask your child to retell the story in their own words before solving it. If they can explain what is happening, choosing the operation is usually easy.
- Draw it. Simple circles or tally marks for each object are enough; drawing is a powerful problem-solving tool, not a crutch.
- Swap roles: give your child an equation like 8 + 7 = 15 and ask them to invent a story that matches. Silly stories about dinosaurs or aliens count too.
Worked examples
These are real questions from the Tutorsaurus word problems within 20 practice, with the answers worked out.
Example 1
Ava has 5 balloons and gives away 1. How many balloons are left?
Answer: 4. 5 − 1 = 4. "Gives away" means subtract.
Example 2
Maya has 6 cookies and gives away 4. How many cookies are left?
Answer: 2. 6 − 4 = 2. "Gives away" means subtract.
Example 3
Diego has 5 coins and gives away 1. How many coins are left?
Answer: 4. 5 − 1 = 4. "Gives away" means subtract.