Add Within 20, Ten Frames

Work the example at the top of the page together, then let your child try the first problem alone. Ask which strategy they used and why it fits the numbers. If a strategy feels slow, go back to the ten frame or number line page for that skill.

Add within 20 by counting the dots in two ten frames. A ten frame has 10 boxes in two rows. Count the dots in both frames to add. Problems on the page include 10 + 5, 6 + 9 and 10 + 10. The directions on the page read: Count the dots in both ten frames. Then, write the sum in the box. The page opens with a worked example, and the answer key shows every answer.

Yes, both. We made it for 1st Grade addition, and the page works the same whether it lands on a kitchen table or a center rotation. At home, most families go through it together and talk the answers out loud, and that talking is where most of the learning happens with addition strategies. In class it runs well as independent work while you pull a small group. Print one copy or thirty, whichever the day needs.

A grid of ten boxes, two rows of five, filled from the top left. Its value is that amounts become recognizable shapes: a full top row is always five, and eight always looks like a full row plus three. Children start seeing quantities instead of counting them one at a time.

Part of the frame is filled and your child works out how many more are needed to make 10. Because the empty boxes are visible, the answer can be seen before it is counted, which is exactly the bridge from counting to knowing.

Our number system is built on tens, so the pairs that make 10 turn up everywhere later. A child who knows 6 and 4 instantly can handle 16 plus 4, and later 26 plus 4, without counting. It is one of the highest value facts to have automatic.

The main ones are counting on, making ten, and using doubles and near doubles. Each gives a quick way to find a sum within 20 without counting every object from one.

For 8 + 5, take 2 from the 5 to make 8 + 2 = 10, then add the 3 that are left to get 13. The make ten sheet gives boxes for each step so students can see the ten.

A near double is a fact like 6 + 7. Double the smaller number (6 + 6 = 12), then add 1 more to get 13. Knowing doubles well makes near doubles quick.

They support 1.OA.C.6, which asks students to add within 20 using strategies such as counting on, making ten, and doubles and near doubles.

By the end of first grade, students should fluently add within 10 (CCSS 1.OA.C.6) and solve addition problems within 20 using strategies like counting on, making ten, and decomposing numbers. They should also add within 100 using place value understanding (1.NBT.C.4).

Start with adding a two-digit number and a one-digit number, then progress to two two-digit numbers. Use place value understanding: add the tens first, then the ones. Base-ten blocks and place value worksheets make this concrete before moving to abstract equations.

Key strategies include counting on from the larger number, making a ten (e.g., 8+5 becomes 8+2+3), using doubles (6+6=12) and near-doubles (6+7=6+6+1), and decomposing to known facts. Worksheets that practice each strategy separately help students build fluency.