Mini Minds Hub · Free printable
Number Bond Bakery: Free Printable Worksheet for Year 1
- ForYear 1
- StageKey Stage 1
- CostFree
- FormatPrintable PDF
Number Bond Bakery is a free printable maths worksheet for Year 1 (ages 5 to 6). Children help a busy bakery by filling each tray to finish the order. They find the missing number in bonds to 10 and then bonds to 20. Page 2 gives the grown-up notes, help ideas, a stretch task and the answers.
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, give page 1 to your child and keep page 2 for yourself. Black and white printing works well.
What is on the sheet
Children help a bakery finish its orders. Some questions are short stories about cakes in a tray, asking how many more are needed to make a full order. Others are number sentences with a gap to fill. The first orders make 10, then the sheet moves on to orders of 20, and a bonus order comes last. Children write the missing number each time. Counting on fingers or with real cakes is fine.
- 7 cupcakes are in the tray. How many more make 10?
- 4 + ___ = 10
- 9 pink cakes and ___ blue cake make 10.
- ___ + 5 = 10
- 10 cakes are baked. How many more make an order of 20?
- 15 + ___ = 20
- Bonus order: 12 + ___ = 20
A worked example
18 + ___ = 20
This question is not on the sheet. It shows two ways a child can find a missing number.
Method 1: count on- Put 18 in your head and say it quietly.
- Count on to 20 and hold up one finger for each step: 19, 20.
- Count the fingers. That is the missing number.
- Look at the ones in 18. There are 8 ones.
- Think of the bond that finishes 8 up to 10.
- The same bond finishes 18 up to 20.
Building number bond skills
Start with real things
Use 10 small objects such as buttons or pasta shapes. Hide some under a cup and ask how many are hidden. Handling objects makes the idea of a whole and its parts easy to see.
Say the whole each time
Before answering, ask your child, "What are we making?" Knowing the whole is 10 or 20 helps them see what the missing number has to do.
Link 10 to 20
Once bonds to 10 feel secure, show how they help with 20. If a bond works with ones, the same bond works with the next ten.
Say it as a sentence
Ask your child to read the number sentence aloud with the answer in place. Hearing the whole sentence helps the bond stick in memory.
Why number bonds matter
A number bond is a pair of numbers that join to make a whole. Children in Year 1 learn the bonds to 10 first, because ten is the number our counting system is built around. Seeing that a whole can be split in different ways is an important step in understanding number.
Knowing bonds by heart makes later maths quicker and less tiring. Children use them to add, to subtract and to bridge through ten. A bakery with trays and orders gives the numbers a meaning. A child can picture the empty spaces in a tray, and that picture helps them find what is missing.
Skills and curriculum link
- Number bonds to 10
- Number bonds to 20
- Finding a missing number
- Reading number sentences
- Counting on
Ideas for helpers
- Parts and wholeA number bond has two parts and a whole. The missing number is one of the parts. Asking "What is the whole?" helps children decide what to do.
- Order does not matterAdding in a different order gives the same total. 1 + 2 and 2 + 1 both make 3. Children can use this when the gap comes first in a number sentence.
- Bonds to 10 help with 20A bond to 10 can often be reused with a bigger number. If children know how to finish a number to 10, they can learn to finish a teen number to 20.
- Adding and taking awayFinding a missing number is linked to subtraction. Children can count how many spaces are empty in a tray, which is the same as taking away.
Key words
- Number bondTwo numbers that join to make a whole, such as 18 and 2 making 20.
- WholeThe full amount you are trying to make, like a full tray or a full order.
- Missing numberThe number that has been left out and that you have to find.
- OrderIn the bakery game, the number of cakes the customer wants.
- Count onStart at one number and count up, saying each new number.
- Number sentenceA sum written in numbers and symbols, like 3 + 4 = 7.
How to use it
- Print both pages. Page 1 is for your child. Keep page 2, which has the notes and answers.
- Read the bakery story aloud. Ask your child to picture the tray and the cakes in it.
- Let them write each missing number. Fingers, counters and real cakes are all fine.
- Check together using page 2. Ask, "How did you work that out?" The thinking matters as much as the answer.
- Come back another day and try the tricky ones again. Repeating a familiar sheet builds confidence.
Help, stretch and game ideas
If it feels too hard
Use 10 small objects or a drawn tray of ten spaces. Put in the cakes from the question, then fill the gaps and count how many are empty. Do the first few orders together and say each number sentence aloud.
To stretch confident children
Ask your child to make up their own order to 20 for a partner to solve. They choose how many cakes are already in the tray, then check the partner's answer. Then try making an order for a different total.
Make it a game
Two players each have a copy and race to finish all seven orders. When both are done, swap sheets and check each other's answers using page 2. A correct answer counts for more than a fast one.
Mistakes to watch for
Watch forA child writes the whole, such as 10 or 20, in the gap.
Try thisAsk, "Is that the whole or the missing part?" Use objects to show the cakes already in the tray and the spaces still to fill.
Watch forA child counts the starting number as the first step, so the answer is one too big.
Try thisSay the starting number, then count on with fingers. Only the new numbers get a finger. For 18 to 20, you say 18, then 19, 20.
Watch forA child adds the two numbers in the question instead of finding the gap.
Try thisPoint to the equals sign and the whole after it. Ask, "What do we need to add to the first number to make the whole?"
Talk about it
- How many cakes are in the tray already, and how many spaces are left?
- What is the whole in this order, 10 or 20?
- How did you find the missing number?
- Can you show me with your fingers?
- Which order was easiest, and which was trickiest?
- Can you think of a bond you already know that helps with the next one?
Take it off the page
Playdough bakery
Make cakes from playdough in two colours. Set out ten on a paper tray and share them between the colours. Say how many of each make 10.
Hidden fingers
Hold up all ten fingers. Fold some down and ask how many are hidden. Swap roles and take turns.
Cake shop role play
Make a pretend shop with paper plates and counters. One child is the baker and one is the customer. The customer asks for an order of 10 or 20 and the baker works out how many more are needed.
Who it is for
Parents
Sit beside your child for the first order, then let them lead. Short sessions work best. If they get stuck, give them 10 objects to move about and count.
Teachers
Use it as a starter, plenary, early finisher task or table activity. It supports the addition and subtraction strand in Year 1 and needs no preparation beyond printing. Page 2 has help, stretch and answers for mixed ability groups.
Home educators
Print it as part of a wider maths plan. It pairs well with real counting, shop role play and everyday talk. You can print it again for brothers and sisters or for revision a few weeks later.
Where this fits
Before this sheet, children count objects, learn to add small numbers and get to know the numbers within 10. Many will already have played with parts and wholes using counters or a ten frame.
After this sheet, children use the same bonds to add and subtract larger numbers more quickly. Secure bonds to 10 and 20 help later with bridging through ten, adding tens and ones, and mental calculation in Year 2.
Questions parents and teachers ask
- What age is Number Bond Bakery for?
It is written for Year 1 (ages 5 to 6), in Key Stage 1. Older children who need more practice with number bonds can use it too.
- What will children practise?
Children practise number bonds to 10 and 20 and finding a missing number. Some questions are bakery stories and others are number sentences with a gap to fill.
- What if it feels too hard?
Use 10 small objects or a drawn tray of ten spaces. Put in the cakes from the question, fill the gaps and count how many are empty. Do the first few orders together.
- Can children use counters or their fingers?
Yes. Counting on fingers or with real objects is a good way to work at this age. Over time, children will begin to remember the bonds and need them less.
- Why do the orders change from 10 to 20?
The sheet starts with bonds to 10 and then moves on to orders of 20, so the whole changes as children go through. This helps them see that bonds to 10 can help when the whole is bigger.
- Is it suitable for teachers to use in class?
Yes. Teachers can use it as a starter, plenary, early finisher task, homework or table activity. It needs no preparation beyond printing, and page 2 has help, stretch and answers.
- Is it free, and do I need colour?
Yes, it is free to print for home and classroom use. No, you do not need colour. It prints well in black and white on plain A4 paper and needs only a pencil.
Preview the full PDF
Made by Jaques of London, making games for families since 1795. A printable supports classroom learning and does not replace a teacher.