Addition to 20: Making 10 Strategy (Pictorial/Abstract)

Free sample questions, a clear explanation, and 5 practice skills with an AI tutor that guides without giving the answer away.

Making 10: Your Superpower for Addition!

Hi, math explorer! Have you ever tried to carry a big pile of toys? It's much easier if you put 10 in a box first, and then carry the rest. Adding numbers is the same! Making a group of 10 first is a math superpower that makes big addition problems super easy and fast. Let's learn how!

Imagine you have an egg carton that holds 10 eggs. If you have 8 eggs and want to add 5 more, you can fill the carton first! You need just 2 more eggs to make 10. So, you take 2 from the 5 eggs. Now your carton is full (that's 10!), and you have 3 extra eggs. 10 and 3 is 13!

Drawing and Writing Our Strategy

Let's solve 8 + 5. We can draw it out in ten-frames!

First, draw 8 dots in one ten-frame. You see there are 2 empty spaces. We need 2 to make 10! So, we break apart the 5 into a 2 and a 3. We move the 2 dots to fill up the first ten-frame. Now we have one full ten-frame (10) and 3 dots left over.

This is how we write it with numbers (our abstract equations!):

8 + 5 = 8 + 2 + 3 = 10 + 3 = 13

Your "Make 10" Mission!

Look at the bigger number.
Ask: How many more to make 10?
Break apart the other number to get what you need.
Add! Now you have 10 + a small number. Easy!

Solving a Word Problem

Let's try it! "You see 9 red birds in a tree. Then, 6 blue birds fly over. How many birds are in the tree now?"

We need to solve 9 + 6. Nine is so close to 10! It only needs 1 more. We can take 1 from the 6. If we take 1 from 6, we have 5 left.

So, 9 + 6 becomes 9 + 1 + 5, which is 10 + 5. That's 15 birds!

Which Way Is Faster?

What about 7 + 8? You could "count on": start at 8 and count 7 more... 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15. That works, but it takes a while!

With our new superpower, we can make a ten! Let's give 2 from the 7 to the 8. Now we have 5 left from the 7. Our problem is now 10 + 5, which is 15! For most of us, making a ten is much faster than counting on.

You are doing an amazing job! Keep practicing making tens, and you'll be a math whiz in no time!

Sample questions

1. Mia has 9 red apples and 4 green apples. How many apples does she have in all? (Think: How can you make a group of 10 first?)

○ 12

○ 14

✓ 13

○ 10

Answer: 13 — Draw 9 circles. How many more do you need to make 10? Break apart the 4 to help.

2. There are 8 birds on a branch. 5 more birds fly to the branch. How many birds are there now?

○ 10

○ 12

○ 14

✓ 13

Answer: 13 — Start with 8. How many more do you need from the 5 to make 10? Then add what's left.

3. Sam picked 7 flowers. His friend gave him 6 more flowers. How many flowers does Sam have?

✓ 13

○ 12

○ 14

○ 10

Answer: 13 — Draw 7 stars. Add some from the 6 to make 10. What's left to add?

Skills in this topic

Solve addition problems within 20 by drawing pictorial representations of making 10.
Write abstract equations to represent the 'making 10' strategy (e.g., 8 + 5 = 8 + 2 + 3 = 10 + 3 = 13).
Apply the 'making 10' strategy to solve addition facts within 20 mentally.
Solve one-step word problems involving addition within 20 using the 'making 10' strategy.
Compare and contrast solving 7 + 8 by counting on versus making a ten, explaining which method is more efficient for you.

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