1. Problem Solving Strategies: Story Problems Addition and Subtraction
Standard 2.2: Computation and Estimation
A. Solve addition and subtraction in everyday situations using concrete
objects with one or two digit numbers.
Standard 2.5: Mathematical Problem Solving and Communication
A. Use appropriate problem solving strategies.

2. STEP ONE
Read the word problem and identify the important information you will need to solve the problem.

3. STEP TWO
Identify if you will need to do addition or subtraction to solve the problem.

4. Addition Addition story problems often use key words like: EXAMPLE:
In all
More than
Combined
altogether
Total of
Sum
Added to
EXAMPLE:
Jane has 5 Barbie's and for her birthday she gets 3 more. How many Barbie’s does Jane have altogether?
(5+3=?)

5. Subtraction Subtraction story problems often use key words like:
Have left
Minus
Difference
Less than
Fewer than
Take away
Gave/give away
EXAMPLE:
I had 7 lollipops and I gave away 4 to my friends. How many do I have left?
(7-4=?)

6. STEP THREE
Solve the problem using one of the many problem solving strategies:
Drawings and illustrations
Making an equation
Making a table
Use your own strategy

7. DRAWINGS AND ILLUSTRATIONS
Drawing a picture is a great way to solve word problems. You not only get the answer but it is easy to see WHY you get the answer. A good example of a problem you would want to make a drawing for would be a problem like:
For Stacie's birthday she got a bag of marbles from her friend Amy. The bag has 6 red marbles, 10 blue marbles, 4 yellow marbles, and 1 green marble. How many marbles does she have in her bag?
What you are trying to find out: How many marbles are there in the bag?
Make a plan: Draw out each set of marbles and count them up.
There are a total of 21 marbles!

8. MAKE AN EQUATION
Making an equation for story problems is also a great way to solve story problems. You just take the numbers from the problem and turn them into an equation. This problem would be a good example of when to use an equation:
Joey has 5 pencils, Sue has 3 pencils, and Bobby has 5 pencils. How many pencils do they have all together?
Decide what you are trying to find out: How many pencils there are all together.
Make a plan or in this case an equation. We know that Joey had 5 pencils, Sue had 3 pencils, and Bobby had 5 pencils.
5+3+5= 13 pencils all together

9. MAKE A TABLE
Making a table is a very organized and simple way to solve some story problems. It is best used when dealing with problems like:
Andy and his parents decided that for his allowance would go up one dollar every week for 3 consecutive weeks. If he starts out at getting 2 dollars how much would he make by week 5?
Find: What will his allowance be week 5?
Plan: Make a chart of what his allowance will be each week 
Week
$ allowance 1
$2.00 2
$3.00 3
$4.00 4
$ 5.00 5
$6.00
ANSWER- $6.00

10. STEP FOUR
Writing your answer to the story problem is the final step
When writing the answer there are a few things you have to remember
What are you trying to find?
Your answer should be in units such as (mph, cups, or inches).
Your answer should be in a complete sentence.
Examples

11. EXAMPLES TO ANSWERS
If Keri has 3 apples and 5 oranges how many more oranges does she have than apples?
Wrong way to Answer this Story Problem:
2 (it is the right answer but when working with story problems you have to explain your answer)
Right Way to Answer this Story Problem:
Keri has 2 more oranges than apples.