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Grade 1 Math Units

Unit Plan 28 (Grade 1 Math): Word Problems & Equations Review

Use addition/subtraction within 20 to solve story problems, place unknowns in any position, and evaluate true/false equations with models and strategies.

Dr. Michael Kester-Haynes

• 5 min read
Unit Plan 28 (Grade 1 Math): Word Problems & Equations Review

Focus: Apply addition and subtraction within 20 to varied story problems; explain strategies with drawings and equations (including unknowns in all positions) and evaluate true/false equations.

Grade Level: 1

Subject Area: Mathematics (Operations & Algebraic Thinking)

Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 45–60 minutes per session

I. Introduction

Students revisit core problem structures (add to, take from, put together, compare) and practice showing thinking with number bonds, ten frames, number lines, and equations that use a symbol for the unknown. They also check equation truth and explain why a strategy works.

Essential Questions

  • How do I decide whether a story problem is addition or subtraction?
  • Where should the unknown go in my equation?
  • How do drawings and equations help me explain and check my work?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

  1. Model and solve story problems within 20 for all structures (add to, take from, put together, compare).
  2. Write equations with a symbol for the unknown in any position (e.g., __ + 7 = 15, 12 – __ = 8, __ = 9 + 6).
  3. Use make-ten, doubles/near doubles, and count on/back strategies to compute fluently.
  4. Determine if equations are true or false and justify with models or reasoning.
  5. Explain and critique strategies using math vocabulary (MP.1, MP.3).

Standards Alignment — CCSS Grade 1 (threaded across the unit)

  • 1.OA.1–2: Represent/solve addition and subtraction problems and solve word problems with unknowns in all positions.
  • 1.OA.6: Add/subtract within 20 using strategies (make-10, doubles, count on/back).
  • 1.OA.7–8: Understand the meaning of the equal sign; determine if equations are true or false; find the value that makes an equation true.
  • Mathematical Practices: MP.1 (make sense & persevere) and MP.3 (justify/critique) emphasized; MP.6 (precision) threaded.

Success Criteria — Student Language

  • I can match a story to a drawing and an equation with an unknown.
  • I can use make-ten or doubles to solve within 20 and explain why it works.
  • I can tell if an equation is true and show evidence.