Find the Missing Number — Desserts and Sweets — Grade 1

Find what was taken away — that is the task on every row. The starting group of cupcakes, lollipops and a pie and the number left are given; the child fills in how many went. This change-unknown form asks for a little more thought than plain subtraction, because the child works back from the result, and that is exactly the Grade 1 growth it is for. Within-twenty amounts keep it grounded in counting the sweet treats, so even the harder reasoning stays something a child can check by hand.

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 sweet treats and within-twenty numbers keep it concrete.

Children who like desserts and sweets 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 dinosaurs, or find the missing number with insects and bugs. You can also browse every subtraction worksheet or the whole sweet treats collection for grade 1 — each sheet prints cleanly in black and white or plays online for free.