Subtraction with Everyday Objects — Kindergarten

Take a small pile of a key, a button and an umbrella, cross some away, count what's left — that is the whole of this kindergarten sheet, repeated with a fresh picture each row. The child does the subtracting with a pencil stroke, removing the everyday objects that go and counting the remainder. Doing it by hand keeps the idea concrete: subtraction is what happens when some of a group is taken away, and the leftover is the answer.

The last number you count among the ones left names how many remain — and that is the answer to a take-away. Linking the count of what's left to the result is the understanding kindergartners are forming, and crossing pictures out keeps it something they can point to and recount for themselves whenever they are unsure.

Children who enjoy everyday objects take to crossing out quickly, and it works as a calm hands-on task or a whole-class action on the board. When this feels easy, take some away in subtraction with musical instruments, or try subtraction with post office. You can also browse every subtraction worksheet or the whole everyday objects collection for kindergarten — each sheet prints cleanly in black and white or plays online for free.