Word Problem Structures
Word Problem / StructureAddition
Join part of a whole
Jaime has 3 dimes and his mother gave him 2 more dimes. How many dimes did he have in all? / 3 + 2 = ?
3 dimes + 2 dimes = 5 dimes
Start Unknown
Jenny gives Jim 2 erasers and she has 4 erasers left. How many erasers did Jenny start with? / 2 4
2 erasers + 4 erasers = 6 erasers
Compare total unknown
Sally has 2 cookies; Emma has 4 more cookies than Sally. How many cookies does Emma have? /
2 cookies + 4 cookies = ?
Join-Change Unknown
There were 8 birds in a nest. Some birds flew in. Now there are 17 birds. How many birds flew to the nest. /
8 birds + ______birds = 17 birds
Subtraction
The Classic
Billy has 8 cookies and his mom ate 4 of the cookies. How many cookies does he have left? /
8 cookies – 4 cookies = 4 cookies
Comparison
Mark has 3 mice. Joy has 7 mice. How many more mice does Joy have than Mark? /
7 mice – 3 mice = 4 mice
Deficit/Missing amount
To get a free toy, Jacob needs 15 tokens. He has collected 7. How many more tokens does Jacob need to get his free toy? / * / * / * / * / * / * / *
15 tokens – 7 tokens = 8 tokens
Separate- Change Unknown
There were 7 cats drinking milk. Some cats walked away. Now there are 3 cats. How many cats walked away? / 7
7 cats - _____ cats = 3 cats
Multiplication
The Classic
Oliver buys 7 pairs of socks in the shop. How many socks does he have altogether? /
2 + 2+ 2 + 2 + 2 +2+ 2 = 14
2 x 7 = 14
Array/Row-column
There are 3 rows of stickers on a sheet. There are 4 stickers on each row. How many stickers are there altogether? /
3 rows x 4 stickers = 12 stickers
Counting principle
For lunch Charlie can either have a turkey sandwich, cheeseburger or a slice of pizza. For dessert he can either have grapes or cookies. What is the total number of ways Charlie can have lunch and a dessert? /
3 mains x 2 desserts = 6 choices
Division
Measurement/Repeated subtraction
If I have 12 scoops of ice-cream and I give out 2 scoops of ice-cream in each cone; how many people can have an ice-cream cone? /
12 scoops total ÷ 2 scoops each cone = 6 cones
Partitive/Unitizing-fair share
Alfie and Aaron have 10 water balloons. How many water balloons can each boy throw at their water day fun day? /
10 water balloons ÷ 2 boys = 5 water balloons each
Product/Factor
The carpet squares in William’s play room cover an area of 15 square feet. One side has 5 squares, how many squares are on the other side? /
15 carpet squares ÷ 5 carpet squares = 3 carpet squares