Little Math Stories Addition and Subtraction Worksheet

Story problems can feel tricky because kids have to hold the little scene in mind and decide what changed. This Grade 1 printable uses three Little Math Stories: frogs by a pond with more frogs jumping over, apples in a basket with some taken away, and rabbits in a garden with more rabbits hopping in. Each story asks one clear question about how many there are now or how many are left.

This page is a good fit when a first grader can count, read simple sentences with support, and work with numbers into the teens. If the reading slows things down, you can read the story aloud while your child points to the numbers. That keeps the focus on the math idea: does the action tell us to join groups or take some away?

The practice works best as a short talk-and-solve activity. Ask, “What happened first?” then, “What changed?” In the frog and rabbit stories, more animals arrive, so children practice addition. In the apple story, some apples are taken away, so they practice subtraction. If the addition numbers feel big, try make ten addition with ten frames next because it gives a visual way to build teen totals. For more story-only adding practice, the Little Math Stories addition worksheet keeps the same word-problem feel while focusing on joining groups.

Sit beside your child and invite them to circle the numbers, retell the story in their own words, and say whether they are adding or subtracting before they solve. If they guess, act it out with fingers, counters, or quick dots on scrap paper. A helpful next step is to have them make up a new frog, apple, or rabbit story using the same pattern, then ask you to solve it.