Max Rescues the Honeycomb: Add by Tens!

About this Grade 1 Adding Multiples Of 10 Drill

Adding multiples of 10 is a foundational skill that helps first graders move beyond counting on their fingers and build mental math confidence. When children master 20 + 30 or 50 + 10, they're developing number sense and beginning to see patterns in our base-10 system. This skill directly supports their ability to add two-digit numbers later in the year, making math feel less overwhelming. At ages 6-7, brains are primed to recognize patterns, and multiples of 10 provide the clearest, most satisfying patterns to find. Students who gain fluency here develop a sense of mathematical logic—they start seeing that numbers follow predictable rules rather than requiring memorization. Plus, this skill connects immediately to real life: counting coins, organizing classroom supplies, or tracking a favorite beekeeper's honey jars all involve tens. Building this confidence now creates positive math identities that carry forward.

What your student will practice

• Recognize and name multiples of 10 up to 100
• Add two multiples of 10 with sums to 100
• Apply skip-counting by 10s to solve addition problems
• Explain addition of multiples of 10 using tens language

Common mistakes to watch for

Many first graders treat multiples of 10 like any other number, adding the zeros as separate digits instead of seeing them as placeholders. You might see a student write 30 + 20 = 50 correctly but then hesitate or count on fingers, not yet trusting the pattern. Others confuse the tens place, writing 30 + 20 = 500 because they add the 3 and 2 to get 5, then add the zeros. Spotting this: listen for counting language ("one, two, three tens") versus digit confusion. If your student can do 3 + 2 = 5 but stumbles on 30 + 20 = 50, they haven't yet connected the two ideas.