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Add and Subtract Tens Worksheet for Year 2 (Free Printable)

  • ForYear 2 (Free Printable)
  • StageKey Stage 1
  • CostFree
  • FormatPrintable PDF
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Add and Subtract Tens is a free printable maths worksheet for Year 2 (ages 6 to 7). Children add and subtract tens in their heads, using what they know about place value. There are 18 questions in three steps, then a challenge question. Page 2 gives the grown up full answers, help ideas and a stretch task.

It comes from the Mini Minds Hub, the free library of printables from Jaques of London, the British games and toy company that has been making games for families since 1795. Print both pages on A4, give page 1 to your child and keep page 2 for yourself. Black and white printing works well.

What is on the sheet

Children work through 18 questions in three steps, then try a challenge question. They add and subtract tens mentally, and can use place value counters to help. A useful idea to spot along the way is that when you add or subtract tens, the ones digit stays the same. Children can use this to answer quickly and to check their work. There is space to write each answer.

A worked example

64 + 20

This question is not on the sheet. It shows two ways children can work.

Method 1: tens and ones
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Method 2: jump in tens
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Ways to build understanding

Use place value counters

Show a number with tens counters and ones counters. Add or take away tens counters only. Ask what stayed the same and what changed.

Count in tens

Count forwards and backwards in tens from different starting numbers, such as 3, 17 or 46. Listen for the pattern in the ones.

Say it in tens

Read 40 + 30 aloud as four tens plus three tens. This links the sum to a number fact the child already knows.

Draw it

Sketch tens as sticks and ones as dots. Cross out sticks to subtract. A quick drawing makes the sum easy to see.

Why tens matter in Year 2

Our number system is built on tens. In a two digit number, the first digit tells us how many tens there are and the second tells us how many ones. 56 is 5 tens and 6 ones. When children really understand this, adding and subtracting tens becomes a quick mental step instead of a hard sum.

Working with tens also prepares children for bigger numbers. When they count in tens, they will sometimes cross a hundred, and then the hundreds digit changes too. Short, regular practice helps children notice these patterns. It builds speed and confidence for the written methods they will meet in later years.

Skills and curriculum link

  • Mental maths
  • Place value
  • Adding tens
  • Subtracting tens
  • Tens and hundreds

Ideas that help

  • Tens are units tooThree tens plus two tens is five tens, just as three apples plus two apples is five apples.
  • Ones stay putWhen you only add or subtract tens, the ones are not touched. This is a helpful thing to check.
  • Count in tensCounting in tens forwards and backwards gives children a feel for how numbers change.
  • Check with the oppositeAdding and subtracting undo each other. Children can check an answer by doing the reverse sum.

Key words

  • TensGroups of ten. In 47, the 4 stands for 4 tens.
  • OnesThe single units in a number. In 47, the 7 stands for 7 ones.
  • Place valueThe value a digit has because of where it sits in a number.
  • DigitOne of the symbols 0 to 9 used to write numbers.
  • AddPut amounts together to find the total.
  • SubtractTake an amount away to find what is left.

How to use it

  1. Print both pages. Page 1 is for your child. Keep page 2, which has the answers and notes.
  2. Work through the first few questions together. Ask your child what they notice about the ones digit.
  3. Let them choose how to work: place value counters, a drawing, a number line or just their head.
  4. Check together using page 2. Ask, "How did you work that out?" The thinking matters as much as the answer.
  5. Come back another day and try the challenge question. Repeating a familiar sheet builds confidence.

Help, stretch and game ideas

If it feels too hard

Use place value counters. Make the starting number with tens and ones. Then add or take away tens counters only, and count what is left. Say the sum aloud as tens, for example three tens plus two tens. Start with the first step and come back later for the rest.

To stretch confident children

Try the challenge question at the end. Then write three similar questions for a friend to answer. Make them a little harder each time, and check your friend's answers by doing the opposite sum.

Make it a game

Race the clock. How many questions can you get right in ten minutes? Write down your score. Next time, try to beat it. Ask a grown up to check your answers using page 2.

Mistakes to watch for

Watch forA child changes the ones digit as well as the tens digit.

Try thisMake the number with counters. Add tens counters only and show that the ones counters are still the same.

Watch forA child adds tens but writes the answer as if they added ones, so the answer is too small.

Try thisSay it in tens. Three tens and two tens make five tens. Ask what number has five tens.

Watch forA child gets confused when subtracting and takes away the wrong digit.

Try thisCross out tens sticks in a quick drawing. Ask which part of the number you are taking away from.

Talk about it

  • What do you notice about the ones digit when you add tens?
  • How many tens are in this number?
  • Can you show me that sum with counters?
  • How could you check your answer?
  • Which question was the trickiest, and why?
  • Can you make up a tens sum of your own?

Take it off the page

Tens shop

Give things prices in tens, such as 10p, 20p or 30p. Children work out the total of two items and the change from 100p. Use pretend coins.

Tens and ones with pasta

Use dried pasta for ones and make bundles of ten with elastic bands. Build numbers, then add and take away bundles.

Hopscotch in tens

Chalk a number track in tens on the ground. Jump forwards or backwards as you call out sums such as plus 30 or minus 20.

Who it is for

Parents

Sit with your child for the first few questions, then let them lead. Ten to fifteen minutes is plenty. If they get stuck, bring out some counters or coins and make the numbers together.

Teachers

Use it as a starter, plenary, early finisher task or homework. The questions move in three steps, so it suits mixed ability groups. Page 2 has answers, support ideas and a stretch task for quick checking.

Home educators

Print the sheet as part of your wider maths plan. It pairs well with counting in tens on walks, and with games using coins. Reuse it for brothers and sisters or for revision a few weeks later.

Where this fits

Before this, children count in tens and ones, and learn what the digits in a two digit number mean. They also add and subtract small numbers within 20.

After this, they add and subtract two digit numbers more widely, and start to cross tens and hundreds boundaries. In Year 3 they work mentally with three digit numbers, adding and subtracting ones, tens and hundreds.

Questions parents and teachers ask

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Made by Jaques of London, making games for families since 1795. A printable supports classroom learning and does not replace a teacher.

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