Word problems with decimal sums and differences: Fluency Drill
Grade 5 · Decimal Operations · CCSS.Math.5.NBT
- Mia spent $6.55 on a book and $2.88 on a pen. Total: $___
- Mia spent $9.46 on a book and $8.38 on a pen. Total: $___
- Mia spent $1.03 on a book and $2.09 on a pen. Total: $___
- Mia spent $9.66 on a book and $9.12 on a pen. Total: $___
- Mia spent $9.44 on a book and $8.61 on a pen. Total: $___
- Mia spent $5.77 on a book and $7.91 on a pen. Total: $___
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.
This printable worksheet gives Grade 5 students focused practice on Word problems with decimal sums and differences, an essential building block within Decimal Operations and one of the milestone skills inside the Common Core CCSS.Math.5.NBT cluster.
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 finish quickly can flip the page over and write two new problems of their own that target the same skill. It's a powerful retention trick that doubles as a quick formative check.
Pair the worksheet with manipulatives (counters, base-ten blocks, fraction tiles, two-color discs) for students who still need concrete support before moving to abstract symbols. The concrete-pictorial-abstract progression is one of the most reliable moves in elementary math.
Want a different angle on this skill? Try the matching variants in our Grade 5 · Decimal Operations collection, or jump up to the cross-grade Decimal Operations 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.5.NBT and supports the broader Decimal Operations 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.
If your student finishes this Word problems with decimal sums and differences page quickly and easily, take a look at the next printable in the Decimal Operations series. The difficulty climbs gradually so kids meet a stretch problem without getting overwhelmed.
Sample problems on this worksheet
- Mia spent $6.55 on a book and $2.88 on a pen. Total: $___
- Mia spent $9.46 on a book and $8.38 on a pen. Total: $___
- Mia spent $1.03 on a book and $2.09 on a pen. Total: $___
- Mia spent $9.66 on a book and $9.12 on a pen. Total: $___
- Mia spent $9.44 on a book and $8.61 on a pen. Total: $___
- Mia spent $5.77 on a book and $7.91 on a pen. Total: $___
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.5.NBT inside the broader Decimal Operations 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 Decimal Operations hub. To see the rest of the Grade 5 work in this strand, visit the Grade 5 · Decimal Operations collection.