Kindergarten · Math · week 13

All the ways to make 5

Find and list all the number pairs that combine to make 5: 0+5, 1+4, and 2+3, and their reverses.

Five is a friendly number with a whole family of pairs. 0 and 5, 1 and 4, 2 and 3, all of these pairs add up to make 5.

Once you know all the ways to make 5, you know a lot of addition and subtraction facts all at once.

📋 For the teacher

Teach it (10–15 min):

Use 5 small objects, such as counters, beans, or blocks. Split them every possible way and notice each split.
Notice a pattern together: as one side goes down by 1, the other side goes up by 1.
Make this a repeatable daily game until the pairs feel familiar.
Do not require memorization by rote yet. Discovery through objects matters more right now.

Talk about it:

Mastery looks like: They can find and name all the pairs of numbers that make 5, using objects or fingers to check.

Common stumbles: Missing a pair, often 0+5; not noticing the up-one, down-one pattern between the two parts.

See it visually

Interactive, spoken-aloud tools that show this idea in motion.

Records attendance + 15 min of Math for this learner.