One Step Word Problems All Operations

About this resource

Looking for one step word problems for all four operations that a third or fourth grader can actually work on? This kit has 30 problems (8 add, 7 subtract, 8 multiply, 7 divide) in two formats, so you can hand out whichever one fits the child: three problems on a page for quick practice, or one big problem on a page with room to draw and work. Every problem has a show-your-work box, a number sentence to fill in and an answer line with the label word. Print it, or type into it. Includes a six-step strategy poster, an answer key and the record-keeping a teacher needs.

EVERYTHING INSIDE (59 pages)

• 30 one-step word problems: 8 add, 7 subtract, 8 multiply, 7 divide. Invented names, no brands.
• Format 1, 3 problems per page: 10 sheets, each problem with a work box, number sentence boxes and an answer line with the label
• Format 2, 1 problem per page: 30 sheets, the same 30 problems, with a picture, a big work box, a number sentence and an answer line; problems 1-10 print the sign and add a draw-a-picture box, problems 11-20 are the standard task, problems 21-30 add a "how do I know" line
• 1 six-step strategy poster (read, ask, look, choose, solve, check) with a what-is-happening guide for add, subtract, multiply and divide
• 1 Which Operation? page: 8 short stories, check the sign that fits (no solving)
• 1 Write Your Own page: write a word problem for a sign, solve it, trade with a partner
• 43 student pages in 5 kinds of student page, each with a "My name" line and one short instruction with a picture
• 2 answer key pages: every number sentence and answer for the 30 problems with the page it is on, the Which Operation? key, and what to look for on the open-ended pages
• Teacher Notes with a five-day way to use the set
• 1 tracker, 1 whole-class progress grid, 1 team note, 1 family page
• 1 filled example (an invented student), 1 phrase bank (17 starters in 6 groups), 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 Numbers

Sums go up to 725, subtraction starts from numbers up to 300, products go up to 88 and division starts from numbers up to 96. Every division comes out even: no remainders. The four operations are mixed, and no two problems in a row use the same one.

How A Student Uses It

1. Read the six-step poster together.

2. Practice choosing the sign on the Which Operation? page.

3. Solve a 3 per page sheet, or a 1 per page page: read, show the work, write the number sentence, write the answer with its label.

4. Check with the key, then write a word problem of your own.

Three Shapes, Three Supports

A small circle, square or triangle by each page title shows how much help the page gives, so children are not comparing numbers. Circle pages print the sign and add a place to draw. Square pages are the standard task. Triangle pages ask the child to explain why the answer makes sense. Hand each student the page that fits today.

Built For The Student Holding The Page

A "My name" line, one short instruction with a small picture cue, a scalloped border and a story picture on each 1 per page page. Nothing on a student page is written for an adult: the keys and the tracker are on separate teacher pages. The work boxes are big: about 3.9 by 1.8 inches on a 3 per page sheet and the full width of the page on a 1 per page page. The file prints clean in black and white.

Invented Examples

Every name and story in the file is made up for practice and says so. No real child, brand or place appears. The tracker is a working paper with a blank line for your own standard.

Type In, Or Print

The name line, every work box, every number sentence box, every answer box and every check 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 family page. This is a fillable PDF; it is not a Google Slides or PowerPoint file.

Who This Is For

Third and fourth grade teachers, special education and resource rooms working on one-step word problems, co-taught classes, tutors, and substitutes who need a set that is ready to hand out.

What This Is, And What It Is Not

A one-step word problem practice set with the record-keeping around it. 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.

If You Want More

More math practice for the same students: Addition and Subtraction Word Problems (worksheets for grade 2), Multiplication Facts Progress Monitoring Probes and Division Fluency Probes (2-digit by 1-digit).