Equal Groups Multiplication Worksheets

About this resource

Equal groups are where multiplication starts, and a child who has only seen "3 x 4" has nothing to hold on to. This is a complete kit for one skill: equal groups multiplication. Children count drawn groups, tell equal groups from groups that are not equal, add the groups up, write the times sentence, draw their own groups, build arrays, find a missing number, solve six word problems and cut and paste. It comes with answer keys, a tracker, a class grid and a family page, so nothing has to be written from scratch.

EVERYTHING INSIDE (29 pages)

• 14 student pages in 9 page types: Look, Equal or Not?, Count the Groups, Add It Up (two pages), Draw the Groups, Arrays (two pages), Missing Number, Word Problems (three pages) and Cut and Paste (two pages)
• 47 scored items on 13 pages (5 equal-or-not, 4 count-the-groups, 6 add-it-up, 3 draw-the-groups, 7 arrays, 6 missing-number, 6 word problems, 10 cut-and-paste)
• Counting pictures drawn for this file (apples, stars, fish, balls and cookies), each over 0.4 inch, sitting in rounded rings so a child counts the rings and then the pictures
• Add It Up: the groups are drawn, the child writes the repeated addition, then the times sentence (2 or 3 groups on set A, 4 or 5 on set B)
• Arrays A (rows of, then the times sentence) and Arrays B (turn it around and write both)
• Draw the Groups: empty rings, so the child draws the same number in each
• Missing Number: six sentences, each with a draw box to help
• 6 word problems, two to a page, each with a 1.5 inch work box and an answer line
• 14 cut-and-paste pieces on 2 mats (6 pieces and 8 pieces), edge to edge so cutting is a few straight lines, with two left-over pieces on each mat
• 2 answer keys
• 1 tracker (page, page type, items right, date) and 1 whole-class progress grid
• 1 team note (a hand-off page between team meetings) and 1 home page
• 1 filled example (an invented student), 1 phrase bank (16 observable-language starters), 1 binder cover and 6 divider tabs with a spine label to cut out
• Start Here and a how-to-read-a-page page

The Page Types, Easiest First

1. Look (1 dot): 3 groups of 3 worked in three short steps, an array, a "watch out" for groups that are not equal, and one to try.

2. Equal or Not? (1 dot): five pictures. Write yes or no, and the times sentence for the equal ones.

3. Count the Groups (1 dot): how many groups, how many in each, how many in all.

4. Add It Up A (1 dot) and B (2 dots): write the repeated addition, then the times sentence.

5. Draw the Groups (2 dots): draw the same number in every ring.

6. Arrays A (2 dots) and B (3 dots): rows of, then turn it around.

7. Missing Number (3 dots): find the number that is missing.

8. Word Problems A, B and C (2, 2 and 3 dots): two stories a page.

9. Cut and Paste, 2 pages (1 and 2 dots): paste the total on its picture, or paste the adding on its times.

One Right Answer On Every Item

Every picture, sentence and answer is read from the same pair of numbers (how many groups, how many in each), worked out by the same code that prints the page, never typed by hand. On every page the answers are all different, the order of the cut pieces is checked so it is not the order of the boxes, and the left-over pieces match no box.

Built For The Child Holding The Page

A big "My name" line, one short instruction, large rounded type, big answer boxes, and dots (not words or colors) to show which level a page is. Nothing on a student page is written for an adult. The pictures have simple outlines and read clearly in black and white.

Type In, Or Print

The name line and every answer box are type-in fields in any PDF reader: click one, type, then save. The same goes for the tracker, the class grid, the team note and the home page. This is a fillable PDF; it is not a Google Slides or PowerPoint file.

Who This Is For

Elementary classrooms, self-contained and resource rooms, and any teacher introducing multiplication as equal groups in a math block, a center, a small group or a morning work folder. The directions are short, and the teacher can read each page aloud.

What This Is, And What It Is Not

An equal groups multiplication worksheet set with the record-keeping around it. It does not cover division, multiplying by 10, 100 or 1,000, or multi-digit multiplication, and it is not a timed test, a screener, a clinical tool, or a claim about any student's age or rate of progress. There is no IEP goal language or eligibility wording anywhere in the file.