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Best Math Word Problems for Kids

Our day-to-day activities require math, and we would struggle with the essentials without a basic understanding of maths. The main goal of teaching kids math is so that they can solve real-life problems that require math. The easiest way to ensure that your kid can understand math when they encounter it outside of the classroom is to use math word problems for kids when they are in class.

Word problems in math are stories entwined with math problems. These problems replicate the fundamental math problems that we encounter daily. To solve these problems, kids must first understand the stories, put themselves in the character’s shoes, and then solve the math problem attached to the stories like they were living in the situation depicted. 

Math Word Problems for Kids in Grades 1-8

At every stage the kids get to, they encounter a different level of difficulty with their lessons, reflecting on the kind of word problems math they need to solve. For example, 2nd grade math word problems would differ from 3rd grade math word problems, which applies to 4th grade math word problems. The goal is to ensure you use the right word math problems for each grade, not confuse the kids or test them below their mathematical capacity. 

Here is a range of simple and hard math word problems that cut across each grade:

1st Grade Math Word Problems 

Problem:

Sally has 5 apples. She gives 2 apples to her friend. How many apples does Sally have now?

Solution: Sally has 5 – 2 = 3 apples left.

Problem:

There are 8 birds on a tree. 3 birds fly away. How many birds are left on the tree?

Solution: 8 – 3 = 5 birds are left on the tree.

2nd Grade Math Word Problems 

Problem:

A toy store has 15 teddy bears and 9 dolls. How many toys are there in total?

Solution: There are 15 + 9 = 24 toys in total.

Problem:

A rectangle has a length of 8 units and a width of 5. What is the perimeter of the rectangle?

Solution: The perimeter is 2 × (length + width) = 2 × (8 + 5) = 26 units.

3rd Grade Math Word Problems 

Problem:

A garden has 36 flowers. If there are 6 rows with the same number of flowers, how many are in each row?

Solution: Each row has 36 ÷ 6 = 6 flowers.

Problem:

John bought a toy for $18 and a puzzle for $9. How much money did John spend in total?

Solution: John spent $18 + $9 = $27.

4th Grade Math Word Problems 

Problem:

A box contains 48 pencils. How many packs are there if there are 8 pencils in each pack?

Solution: There are 48 ÷ 8 = 6 packs.

Problem:

If the perimeter of a square is 36 units, what is the length of one side of the square?

Solution: Each side of the square is 36 ÷ 4 = 9 units.

5th Grade Math Word Problems 

Problem:

There are 25 students in a class. If 40% of them are girls, how many girls are in the class?

Solution: (40/100) × 25 = 10 girls are in the class.

Problem:

A recipe calls for 3/4 cup of sugar. How much sugar will you need to make half of the recipe?

Solution: You will need (1/2) × (3/4) = 3/8 cup of sugar.

6th Grade Math Word Problems 

Problem:

If a train travels at a speed of 75 km/h for 2.5 hours, how far does it travel?

Solution: The distance traveled is 75 km/h × 2.5 h = 187.5 km.

Problem:

The ratio of boys to girls in a class is 3:4. If there are 27 students, how many are boys?

Solution: There are (3/7) × 27 = 11 boys.

7th Grade Math Word Problems 

Problem:

If a shirt initially costs $45 and is on sale for 30% off, what is the sale price?

Solution: The sale price is $45 – (30/100) × $45 = $31.50.

Problem:

Sam can paint a fence in 6 hours, while his friend Tom can paint it in 4 hours. How long will it take if they work together?

Solution: Their combined work rate is 1/6 + 1/4 = 5/12. It will take them 1 / (5/12) = 12/5 hours, or 2.4 hours.

8th Grade Math Word Problems 

Problem:

Solve for x: 3x + 5 = 17.

Solution: Subtract 5 from both sides, then divide by 3: x = 4.

Problem:

The sum of two consecutive odd integers is 64. What are the integers?

Solution: Let the integers be x and x + 2. Solving the equation 2x + 2 = 64 gives x = 31. So the integers are 31 and 33.

These are just a few of the numerous 1st grade math word problems, second grade math word problems, math word problems 3rd grade, and many others that exist, but these should give you a sense of the difficulty levels and how they climb through each grade. If you want to help with math word problems, there are also concept-specific math problems that would be listed below. 

Addition Word Problems

Here are some addition math word problems 2nd grade, 1st grade, and 3rd grade. 

Problem:

Emily has 5 apples, and her friend Alex gives her 3 more. How many apples does Emily have in total?

Solution: 5 + 3 = 8

Problem:

Jake has 7 toy cars, and his brother Ethan gives him 2 more toy cars. How many toy cars does Jake have now?

Solution: 7 + 2 = 9

Problem:

Team A scored 3 goals in a soccer match, and Team B scored 4 goals. How many goals were scored in total during the match?

Solution: 3 + 4 = 7

Problem:

Jane had 25 marbles, and she found 11 more marbles in her backyard. How many marbles does Jane have in total?

Solution: 25 + 11 = 36

Subtraction Word Problems 

Here are some subtraction word problems 

Problem:

Lily had 40 math homework pages to complete. She finished 28 of them. How many math homework pages does she still need to complete?

Solution: 40 – 28 = 12

Problem:

Jack practiced soccer for 1 hour on Monday and 1.5 hours on Tuesday. How much time did he spend practicing soccer in total?

Solution: 1 + 1.5 = 2.5 hours

Problem:

There were 25 gumballs in the machine. After Sam bought 10 gumballs, how many gumballs are left in the machine?

Solution: 25 – 10 = 15

Problem:

The ice cream shop had 12 chocolate and 5 vanilla ice cream cones. How many more chocolate cones are there than vanilla cones?

Solution: 12 – 5 = 7

Multiplication Word Problems

Here are some multiplication math word problems 

Problem:

Amy has 3 bags, and each bag contains 8 candies. How many candies does she have in total?

Solution: 3 bags × 8 candies/bag = 24 candies

Problem:

There are 5 boxes, and each box contains 6 apples. How many apples are there in total?

Solution: 5 boxes × 6 apples/box = 30 apples

Problem:

A library has 4 bookshelves, and each shelf can hold 10 books. How many books can the library hold in total?

Solution: 4 bookshelves × 10 books/shelf = 40 books

Problem:

In a garden, there are 7 bunches of flowers, and each bunch has 9 flowers. How many flowers are there in total?

Solution: 7 bunches × 9 flowers/bunch = 63 flowers

Division Word Problems

Here are some division word problems 

Problem:

There are 48 chocolates, and they need to be distributed among 8 kids equally. How many chocolates will each kid receive?

Solution: 48 chocolates ÷ 8 kids = 6 chocolates per kid

Problem:

There are 20 pizzas at a party, and they need to be shared among 5 people equally. How many pizzas will each person get?

Solution: 20 pizzas ÷ 5 people = 4 pizzas per person

Problem:

45 apples need to be placed equally in 9 baskets. How many apples will be in each basket?

Solution: 45 apples ÷ 9 baskets = 5 apples per basket

Problem:

Sarah has 30 marbles, and she wants to give an equal number of marbles to her 5 friends. How many marbles will each friend receive?

Solution: 30 marbles ÷ 5 friends = 6 marbles per friend

Mixed Word Problems

Here are some fun mixed word problems 

Problem:

A pack of markers costs $5, and Mia wants to buy 4 packs. How much will Mia spend in total?

Solution: 4 packs × $5/pack = $20

Problem:

Noah has 32 chocolate chip cookies and wants to divide them equally into 4 bags. How many cookies will be in each bag?

Solution: 32 cookies ÷ 4 bags = 8 cookies per bag

Problem:

There are 18 apples and 15 oranges. If Ava wants to put an equal number of fruits in each basket and maximize the number of baskets, how many will Ava need?

Solution: The greatest common divisor of 18 and 15 is 3. So, Ava will need 3 baskets.

Problem:

There are 8 red balloons and 12 blue balloons. If Owen wants to divide them equally among 4 groups for a party game, how many balloons will be in each group?

Solution: (8 red balloons + 12 blue balloons) ÷ 4 groups = 5 balloons per group

Fractions Word Problems

Here are some fraction word problems: 

Problem:

Mia has 12 candies and wants to share 3/4 of them with her friends. How many candies will she share?

Solution: 12 × 3/4 = 9 candies

Problem:

Ava mixed 1/3 cup of orange juice with 2/3 cup of apple juice. What fraction of the drink is orange juice?

Solution: 1/3 / (1/3 + 2/3) = 1/3 or 1/3 of the mixture

Problem:

Owen ate 5 out of 10 slices of watermelon. What fraction of the watermelon did he eat?

Solution: 5/10 or 1/2

Problem:

Sophia has a palette with 4 colors. She mixed 1/4 of the paint to create a new color. How much of the paint is the new color?

Solution: 1/4 or 25% of the paint is the new color.

Problem:

Noah practiced basketball for 3/5 of an hour and then took a break for 2/5. How much time did his practice and break together take?

Solution: 3/5 + 2/5 = 5/5 or 1 whole hour

Decimals Word Problems

Here are some decimal word problems:

Problem:

Lily spent 2.5 hours studying math and 0.75 hours studying science. How much time did she spend studying in total?

Solution: 2.5 hours + 0.75 hours = 3.25 hours

Problem:

Mia has $250.75 in her savings account. She withdraws $50.25. How much money does she have left?

Solution: $250.75 – $50.25 = $200.50

Problem:

The temperature increased by 3.5 degrees Celsius during the day and then decreased by 1.8 degrees Celsius at night. What was the net temperature change?

Solution: 3.5 – 1.8 = 1.7 degrees Celsius

Problem:

Owen lifted weights that weighed 18.6 kg and then added 5.2 kg more. What was the total weight of the weights?

Solution: 18.6 kg + 5.2 kg = 23.8 kg

Problem:

Sophia used 2.75 cups of flour in a cake recipe. If she needs 3.5 cups, how much more flour does she need?

Solution: 3.5 – 2.75 = 0.75 cups of flour more

Conclusion 

Solving math word problems requires an understanding of how math for kids works, and sometimes this can be overwhelming work for the parents, which is why you should turn to math apps that solve word problems. One such math app is Brighterly. 

Brighterly.com is a platform that provides top math tutoring for kids of all grades. You can find professional tutors on the platform who will teach your child math word problems using fun videos and games to ensure maximum concentration. Register now on Brighterly to ensure that your kids are getting the best.