There are several different types of addition and subtraction word problems that students must be able to solve with consistency by the end of second grade. (Click on the picture to download a copy!)
Greg Tang is a nationally respected math guru. He has a FREE word problem generator on his website, which can be found here: Greg Tang Math Word Problem Generator! He trained East Side teachers the past two years on how to teach problem solving and how to break down the steps for solving with our students. He suggests the following steps, which is what we use in class to solve problems!
Rewriting the question as a statement, helps students to truly understand what missing information they are looking to find. Creating and labeling a bar model is one of the most important steps in this plan! A correctly formed bar model, will show students exactly how to write a number sentence and solve their problem. Is the whole (biggest/total amount) missing in the model, but you have both parts? Simple, add the parts to find your answer! Do you have the whole, but you are missing one part? Subtract to find your answer. A number sentence, or equation, includes numbers to add or subtract and a variable, or unknown part! When solving comparison problems (keywords more/fewer), the students should first determine who/what has more and who/what has fewer or less. We try to solve several problems of the day each week. Here is what these steps look like in action:
Another great site for practicing modeling and solving word problems is Thinking Blocks. This site also includes a FREE app for practicing these problems. We use the app in class to help us practice these problems in an interactive way!
Problem solving takes time and practice, but it doesn't have to be an unsolvable mystery. When working with your child at home, he/she should be familiar with the steps above and be able to work through these steps to solve homework problems!
Happy Problem Solving,
Mrs. Kidd
