Word problems (compare): Fluency Drill
Grade 1 · Subtraction within 20 · CCSS.Math.1.OA
- Sam had 10 pencils and gave away 6. How many pencils does Sam have left? ___
- Sam had 20 grapes and gave away 18. How many grapes does Sam have left? ___
- Kai had 15 beads and gave away 13. How many beads does Kai have left? ___
- Mara had 16 marbles and gave away 2. How many marbles does Mara have left? ___
- Mara had 13 coins and gave away 1. How many coins does Mara have left? ___
- Eli had 19 cookies and gave away 4. How many cookies does Eli have left? ___
This is the preview. Hit "Print this worksheet" above to open a clean, ad-free, one-page version with name and date lines and writing space for each problem. A separate answer key prints on the second page for the grown-up. Tear it off before handing the practice page to your child.
Bring focused, low-prep practice into your classroom or home with this Grade 1 worksheet on Word problems (compare). It targets the Subtraction within 20 strand of the Common Core math standards (CCSS.Math.1.OA) and prints cleanly on a single sheet of letter or A4 paper.
Each printable is a single black-and-white page that prints cleanly on standard letter or A4 paper, so teachers and parents can run off a class set or a single copy without wasting toner. Students who get stuck should slow down on the first problem, talk through what the question is actually asking, and only then pick up the pencil. Reading errors disguise themselves as math errors all the time at this age.
This page works well as morning math, as a center rotation, as a short homework assignment, or as a quick formative check before a quiz. The same one-page format also makes it easy to keep a small folder of completed work as evidence for parent–teacher conferences.
Want a different angle on this skill? Try the matching variants in our Grade 1 · Subtraction within 20 collection, or jump up to the cross-grade Subtraction within 20 hub.
We deliberately keep the layout uncluttered: a clean header, generous spacing for kids to show their work, and a problem grid that does not feel overwhelming. Elementary students get tunnel vision on busy pages, and that visual anxiety is often mistaken for a math gap.
This worksheet is aligned to Common Core State Standard CCSS.Math.1.OA and supports the broader Subtraction within 20 progression that students continue to build through later grades. The same skill is revisited each year with greater abstraction, so the work your student does on this single sheet feeds into the multi-digit and multi-step problems they will see in middle school.
Pair this Word problems (compare) worksheet with the rest of the Grade 1 Subtraction within 20 collection for a focused practice block that covers the standard from several angles in a single afternoon.
Sample problems on this worksheet
- Sam had 10 pencils and gave away 6. How many pencils does Sam have left? ___
- Sam had 20 grapes and gave away 18. How many grapes does Sam have left? ___
- Kai had 15 beads and gave away 13. How many beads does Kai have left? ___
- Mara had 16 marbles and gave away 2. How many marbles does Mara have left? ___
- Mara had 13 coins and gave away 1. How many coins does Mara have left? ___
- Eli had 19 cookies and gave away 4. How many cookies does Eli have left? ___
How to use this worksheet
Print one copy per child on standard letter or A4 paper. Set a quiet 10 to 15 minute window. Hand your student a sharpened pencil and an eraser, and let them work top to bottom. The first row is a warm-up on purpose. The last row is a stretch on purpose. Sit with them as they finish so any misconceptions surface right away instead of getting practiced into a bad habit.
If your student finishes quickly, flip the page over and ask them to write two new problems of their own that target the same skill. It's a powerful retention move. If they get stuck, pull out manipulatives that match the skill (counters for early addition, base-ten blocks for place value, fraction tiles for fractions) and work through one or two problems together before letting them try the rest on their own.
Common Core alignment
This page targets CCSS.Math.1.OA inside the broader Subtraction within 20 progression. The skill is introduced earlier in elementary school through concrete representations and revisited each year with greater abstraction. To see how it develops across grade levels, visit our Subtraction within 20 hub. To see the rest of the Grade 1 work in this strand, visit the Grade 1 · Subtraction within 20 collection.