Find the Missing Number — Christmas — Grade 1

Here a child meets the missing-number form of subtraction: a group of trees, baubles and a stocking, the amount remaining, and a blank for how many were removed. Solving it means counting up from what's left to the start, or finding the take-away that fits — reasoning about subtraction rather than just performing it. The pictured Christmas things and the within-twenty range keep the thinking concrete and self-checkable, so a Grade 1 child can confirm the missing number by counting whenever they are unsure.

Change-unknown subtraction builds the idea that start, change, and result are linked — that knowing two of them gives the third. A child who finds the amount removed is reasoning about that relationship, not just performing a take-away, which is exactly the Grade 1 growth this targets. Pictured Christmas things and within-twenty numbers keep it concrete.

Children who like christmas take to the puzzle of working backward, and it suits a child ready for a little more than plain take-away. When this feels easy, try find the missing number with classroom objects, or find the missing number with fruits. You can also browse every subtraction worksheet or the whole Christmas things collection for grade 1 — each sheet prints cleanly in black and white or plays online for free.