Halloween Addition Word Problem Printables

Word problems can be a great way to help kids understand the context in which we use math.

So often we teach math in an abstract way that it can be hard for kids (and adults) to understand how to use the concepts.

Word problems aren’t the only way to illustrate the usefulness of math but they’re one relatively easy and effective method.

Halloween

Halloween is such a great theme for kids. The holiday can range from spooky and scary to fun and silly – which means there is something for everyone.

Not to mention, it’s a great educational theme. You can bring in history, writing, reading, math, science, and probably a lot more.

There are fantastic Halloween colouring pages to add to your Halloween theme, too!

Halloween Addition Word Problems

These are not tricky word problems – just standard, fun, Halloween-themed word problems! 

Included in this set is 5 word problems under 10, 5 word problems under 20, and 2 word problems adding 3 numbers.

Each word problem has a different topic from jack-o-lantern, to vampire, to ghost, to black cats!

So get ready for Halloween with these Halloween addition printables!

Why Use Addition Word Problems

Simply put – knowing how to add 9 and 6 is not useful unless you know when to add 9 plus 6.

Word problems are one simple way in which we can gauge how much our kids are truly grasping the math they’re supposed to be learning.

When I was a kid playing piano I was really talented at memorizing the pieces I played. I was not so great at reading the sheet music. Which meant that I could play one piece of music but every new piece of music required the same level of effort. Whereas if I had worked harder on reading sheet music, I would be able to play many more pieces of music.

Math has a similar effect. Anyone can memorize that 9+6=15. But if you’ve only memorized that and not how to do addition, then when you encounter 9+7, you’ll be totally lost.

So how do word problems solve this issue?

Word problems use common math language to help people figure out what tools they need to use. But they do not go as far as laying out the math problem for you.

So for instance, you might have a word problem like ‘Joey went trick or treating at 6 houses. Then he stopped for a quick break and went trick or treating at 9 more houses. How many houses did Joey trick or treat at?’

It includes no words like ‘plus’ or ‘minus’ or ‘equals’. However, it does include words like ‘more’.

If you’re a person who only memorized that 9+6=15, then you have no idea how many houses Joey trick or treated at. If you’re a person who understands how addition works, you know that Joey went to 15 houses.

And as parents and educators, word problems can help us better see that they are understanding addition.

The Halloween Addition Word Problem Printables

These Halloween addition word problem pages take up a whole page to give kids space to draw out the problem.

I love adding visuals to math. These word problems were meant to be a step up from using physical manipulatives.

All of my kids benefitted from using manipulatives in math. But at a certain point, I wanted them to move away from physical manipulatives and use a more abstract method. The in-between step is drawing the visual on the paper. It’s still visual and easy discernable, but it’s much more in their control. And it’s also something always available to them (if they have pencil and paper).

How to Use the Halloween Addition Word Problem Pages

There are 12 different pages in this set so make sure you’re choosing the correct ones for your kid(s).

Five of the pages are addition under 10, five are addition between 10 and 20, and 2 are addition with 3 numbers.

Each one also has it’s own theme.

If your child is already familiar with word problems and has no trouble, just hand over the pages!

If you need to walk them through the process, here’s how I do it:

First, have them read the problem. Once they’ve read through it, ask if anything stood out to them.

Hopefully they notice details like the numbers. If not, you can prompt them. ‘How many candy corn did they eat at first?’ or ‘How many green test tubes were there?

Once you have pointed out the important facts, prompt them to draw it out. They can make an illustration right on the page.

Then, after it’s drawn, see if you can get them to answer the addition problem. ‘Oh, I see 11 pieces of candy corn here and 3 there. How many is that altogether?’

Lastly, have them write them problem on the equation lines.

And voila, you have a completed word problem page!

Get Your Download Here

You can get your own copy of the Halloween word problems by clicking below:

Download the Halloween Word Problems Here