Story Problems
Aligned to 1.OA.A.1 — Common Core State Standards for Mathematics.
What this lesson teaches
In a story problem, we read the words to find out if we should add to put things together or subtract to take things away.
Worked examples
Example 1
Sam has 4 red apples and 3 green apples. How many apples in all? We put them together: 4 + 3 = 7 apples.
Example 2
Lena had 9 marbles and lost 4. How many now? The word 'lost' means take away: 9 − 4 = 5 marbles.
Example 3
There are 12 seats and 7 are taken. How many are empty? We know the whole and one part, so we subtract: 12 − 7 = 5 empty seats.
Practice questions
- You have 5 stickers and get 2 more. How many now?
- There are 8 birds. 3 fly away. How many are left?
- Mia has 6 marbles. Leo has 7. How many do they have together?
Watch the lesson
Every lesson comes with a video taught in English and Spanish — the same video the QR code in the printed workbook opens.
▶ Watch this lessonEn español
Problemas con cuentos
En un problema con cuento, leemos las palabras para saber si debemos sumar para juntar cosas o restar para quitar cosas.
Ejemplo 1: Sam tiene 4 manzanas rojas y 3 manzanas verdes. ¿Cuántas manzanas hay en total? Las juntamos: 4 + 3 = 7 manzanas.
Ejemplo 2: Lena tenía 9 canicas y perdió 4. ¿Cuántas tiene ahora? La palabra 'perdió' significa quitar: 9 − 4 = 5 canicas.
Ejemplo 3: Hay 12 asientos y 7 están ocupados. ¿Cuántos están vacíos? Conocemos el total y una parte, así que restamos: 12 − 7 = 5 asientos vacíos.
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