Addition and Subtraction Word Problems Within 20 and to 100

About this resource

Matching a word problem to an equation is not the same skill as writing one, and a student who is only ever

asked to write from scratch never gets checked on whether they can recognize the right one when someone else

has already written it. This file gives 24 word problems, each with three pre-printed equation choices, split

into two levels — numbers within 20, and two-digit numbers to 100 that never require carrying or borrowing —

with two of the three choices always a deliberate, explained near miss.

EVERYTHING INSIDE (19 pages)

• 24 word problems across 6 match sets (4 each) — Level 1 Addition, Level 1 Subtraction, Level 1 Mixed (all

within 20), and Level 2 Addition, Level 2 Subtraction, Level 2 Mixed (all to 100, no regrouping needed) —

every problem paired with exactly one correct equation and two near-miss distractors, every match verified in

code, never typed by hand

• 1 how-it-works page with two fully worked examples (one addition, one subtraction) showing exactly which

choice gets circled and why the other two are wrong

• 1 answer key, generated from the same data as every problem, plus a plain-language legend for what circling

each type of wrong choice usually means

• 1 practice tracker (one student, six sets) and 1 class grid (whole class), type-in or print
• 1 family page — two home-practice problems (one within-20, one to-100) and three steps for solving together
• 1 filled example — an invented student's tracker, every number on it read off its own table
• 1 phrase bank — progress-note, family-note and next-step starters, plus talk-first questions for any problem
• 1 binder cover with a spine label and six divider tabs
• Start Here and a contents page that gives every page number

Two Levels, No Surprises

Level 1 (12 problems) uses single numbers 1–20 and single-step addition or subtraction. Level 2 (12 problems)

uses two-digit numbers to 100, built so every addition problem's ones digits never carry and every subtraction

problem's ones and tens digits never borrow — the two-digit level never quietly requires a skill this file does

not teach.

Three Choices, Two Named Near Misses

Every problem's three equations are built from the same two numbers in the story. One is always a "wrong

operation" choice — the right numbers, the other operation, computed correctly for THAT operation, which is

picked by a student who matched by number instead of by story. Addition problems add a "wrong result" choice —

right numbers, right operation, the answer off by one or two. Subtraction problems add a "transposed numbers"

choice — the same two numbers in the wrong order, paired with the real answer. The answer key explains what

picking each one usually means.

Type In, Or Print

The name and date lines, the "letter I circled" and "number sentence" lines, the tracker, the class grid and

the family page are type-in fields in any PDF reader; the "solve it your own way first" box on every problem is

always pencil space. This is a fillable PDF; it is not a Google Slides or PowerPoint file.

Who This Is For

First through third grade classrooms, self-contained and resource rooms, and any small group that needs to

check whether a word problem was read correctly, not just whether an equation can be written. The talk-first

questions on the how-it-works page are written for a paraprofessional or a volunteer to run a table; the family

page sends the same skill home.

What This Is, And What It Is Not

A matching-format word-problem practice set with the record-keeping around it. It is not a full word-problem

curriculum, not an assessment, and not a claim about any student's age, grade level or rate of progress. The

tracker has a blank line for your own scoring criteria.