Math in English: Two skills, one brain

Julia Privalova

Math in English: Two skills, one brain

Preface

This collection of word problems is specifically designed to help Elementary level English learners practice their language skills in a real-world context through basic math.

Solving math problems in a foreign language is one of the most effective ways to break the "language barrier."

Developed by Julia Privalova, this method stems from her past experience as a Computer Science student in the United States.

Counting Items

1. A notebook costs three dollars. An album costs two dollars more than the notebook. How much does the album cost?2. There were eighteen books in the classroom library. Malik borrowed eight. How many books are left?3. Julia started with nine stickers. Her friend gave her four more. How many stickers does she have in total?4. David has ten fish, and Malik has three fewer. How many fish does Malik have?5. Malika made eight chocolate muffins and seven vanilla muffins. How many did she make altogether?6. There are nine trees near the school. Six are birches, and the rest are lindens. How many lindens are there?7. There are four cars in the parking lot. Six more arrive. How many cars are there now?8. A bun costs seven dollars, and a pie is two dollars cheaper. How much does the pie cost?9. Malik has five red apples and six green apples in a basket. How many apples does he have in total?10. Ten children are in a swimming class. Julia and David cannot swim yet. How many children can swim?11. Malik found five shells in the morning and five more in the afternoon. How many did he find in total?12. Julia made six envelopes, and David made four. How many more envelopes did Julia make than David?13. There are seven birds on one branch and three on another. How many birds are there altogether?14. David had ten dollars. He bought a pencil for one dollar. How much money does he have left?15. A toy car costs four dollars, and a ball costs five dollars. How much do they cost in total?16. There are six groups in the pool in the morning and ten in the evening. How many fewer groups are there in the morning?17. Julia has two dolls, and Malika has three more than Julia. How many dolls does Malika have?18. There were ten boys and eight girls swimming in the river. How many more boys than girls were swimming?19. Malika’s family subscribes to three newspapers, while David’s family subscribes to one more. How many newspapers does David’s family have?20. There are eighteen boys on the playground. Malik and David are jumping, and the rest are playing football. How many are playing football?21. Julia sewed four buttons on a dress and had two left to sew. How many buttons will be on the dress in total?22. Julia was washing handkerchiefs, and Malik was hanging them up. He hung up ten, but there were four more left. How many handkerchiefs did Julia wash?23. There are seven days in a week. Malik has two days off. How many workdays does he have?