Seven Strategies for Solving Word Problems

By Katrina Maccalous, EdD.

Updated 2025

Where it all began…

I began writing this article last school year as my students and I dived head first into what is easily the most important and most challenging standard for elementary (and honestly, all grade levels of math)…multi-step word problems!

There’s something about putting math into a “story” that makes children seemingly forget everything they know about math. The fact that they are no longer simply solving computations, but required to transfer reading skills to comprehend and compute in a variety of contexts, adds another layer of thinking students must problem-solve. They may have mastered procedural processes for addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, but put that in the context of a multi-step problem, and suddenly it’s like a foreign language! Solving word problems, and especially multi-step problems is a product (no, not the math kind) of a problem-solver and critical thinker…what we all want for our children! But teaching computation skills alone, is not enough to produce those qualities. It takes explicit instruction, modeling, and lots of practice with just-in-time feedback to begin to develop that flexibility in thinking.

Hopefully, the ideas, resources, and strategies I have to share in these posts will be useful in some capacity for any teacher struggling with this concept, as they were for me. Check out these ideas below…and share your own in the comments!

Onto the Good Stuff…What Works

Neuroscience tells us that the brain retains and transfers learning when concepts are spiraled, interleaved, and connected to prior knowledge. Mastering multi-step word problems is a skill that requires on-going work; while the strategies I have below provide students with opportunities to engage with various representations of mathematical situations, apply conceptual understanding to new problems and real-world situations, and explain and justify their problem-solving strategies.

1. Operation Flow Chart: I love using this visual math flow chart! While it requires intentional modeling and plenty of guided practice, the payoff is absolutely worth it. Once students begin to internalize the process, they grow into confident, independent problem solvers–think of it as a map to the abstract. Students follow a simple decision-making chart to help them determine which operation(s) to use. It can also be customized to differentiate needs based on grade-level or student need and used as a tool to support students in error analysis and checking their work. What’s important is that students are thinking about what the question is asking them to do or find and what information they need in order to do that.

Let’s look at an example:

In this released STAAR Grade 4 test item, students were asked to represent a multi-step problem using an equation. Fifty-eight percent of students selected the incorrect set of equations. What made this item so challenging?

Looking at the answer choices, 41% of students chose A, which contains the same values as C…the correct answer. In both A and C, the first equation is correctly set up: the flower shop had 242 roses and sold 128, leaving 114. The confusion came in the second equation. In choice A, students added 114 to 150, suggesting they interpreted the problem as though the shop received 150 more roses on Monday. However, the problem states that 150 is the total number of roses the shop had after receiving more. Therefore, students should have subtracted to determine how many roses were delivered.

The goal is to help students conceptualize and analyze both the question and the supporting information in a problem, so they can determine the appropriate operation based on context—not just keywords. This tool promotes critical thinking and strengthens students’ ability to reason through real-world mathematical situations, paving the way for transfer to more abstract concepts.

In the example, we know we are looking for a PART. Now students must determine whether we are dealing with equal parts or not and look back into the “text” for our “text evidence” (literacy connection!). We do not see any indication that there are an equal number of roses being delivered, so we move through the flowchart to determine we must subtract to find the number delivered on Monday.

My version (available for free download!) includes:

• Operation context clue words that can be used for digital reference or printed for classroom use
• Interactive math journal pages to support hands-on practice and reflection

This resource is a classroom favorite and a great support for building mathematical reasoning and problem-solving independence!

2. Strip diagrams: This model was new to me when I moved to Texas and it took awhile for me to appreciate it. They are sometimes called tape diagrams or thinking blocks. Drawing or acting out what is happening in a word problem is an effective way for students to visualize what path they need to take to solve the problem and strip diagrams are a great option for this. Each block is comprised of a single block or line that represents the total/largest value. The rest of the blocks or strips represent the parts. Depending on whether the parts are equivalent or not, as well as the relative sizes of the parts, helps create a visual of a problem. Below is an example of an activity I use in stations to have students practice matching a word problem, strip diagram and equation to each other. It’s also available as a digital resource on my TPT page!

3. Use a Problem-Solving Model:

• Know and Need to Know: This next strategy is one of the MOST important when helping students comprehend word problems. This strategy aids students in internalizing the process of problem-solving, but it takes a LOT of modeling and practice to get them to use it successfully and independently. After students have identified what the problem is asking them to find–in our example, you will recall we are asked to subtract to find out how many roses were delivered on Monday. In order to subtract, we must have a total and at least one part. Sometimes that information is readily available, but sometimes we have to complete another step to get there. In our example, we are given lots of information we will need to accurately solve for the given question. Students fill this information out on a T-chart. Look at the example below to see how this would look for our flower shop problem:

• C.U.B.E.S: If you are unfamiliar with the acronym, C.U.B.E.S. stands for CIRCLE NUMBERS, UNDERLINE QUESTION, BOX IN CONTEXT CLUE WORDS (see below), EXAMINE THE PROBLEM (this is when I have students use the flow chart organizer process), and SOLVE. I start by having my students do a think-pair-share on strategies for solving word problems. Then we regroup, and share our ideas. After we’ve built some background knowledge, I pass out a graphic organizer with the acronym C.U.B.E.S. on it, and challenge the students to come up with what strategy each letter could stand for (get ready for some interesting thoughts, but also some ones that are right on target). Next, I share the anchor chart I’ve created and students copy the steps down on their organizer. This goes into their math resource folder or math journal for them to refer to as needed. After we’ve got our charts ready, I model the process, while they follow along, and they practice with guided support and independently (repeat the I do, we do, you do process as often as needed…for me, it’s often!) Check out my Pinterest Boards for some great examples created by other educators. This year I decided to create an organizer “plan” to support students. I use the organizer as a guide or plan for students to use to identify key information (or text evidence) that will answer the given question. Below is the organizer I have created to support my students.

4. Look for Context/Operation Clues: One of the most challenging aspects of word problems is the VOCABULARY. Students need to understand the meaning behind a whole plethora of words to support them with comprehending the context of a given problem. Work with students to brainstorm context clue words (connection to reading comprehension strategies) and create a class chart for them to reference.

Note: for these ideas to work, be sure to emphasize that the operation and pathway to solving (strategies) are not always one-in-the-same. A problem can ask for the difference (the amount/distance between given quantities), commonly identified as subtraction, but “counting up,” which is often associated with be adding can be the strategy used. Honestly, any activities you use in other content areas to learn vocabulary can be transferred to math! Another Note: In addition to operation context clues, students need exposure to reading numbers in written form (i.e. thirteen, fourteen, fifteen), as well as ordinal numbers (i.e. first, second, third).

5. Practice, Practice, Practice in a Variety of Ways: One way for students to practice is first by trying to identify the operation(s). Give students a set of word problems with mixed operations and steps. Students sort by number of steps and then identify the operation(s). I don’t have students solve them for this part of the activity. My focus is on how to think through a word problem, not the computation yet. Have them practice creating their own word problems. Students can use the same sorting cards for this. They draw the number of steps, then operation. (Can be done with just one or the other too depending on students’ needs). Then they create their own problem for a partner to solve. With every practice we do, students are expected to use C.U.B.E.S. to make their plans and “find text evidence” to help them answer the questions.

6. Leverage Your Students: Peer Coaching: They say that if someone can teach another how to do it, then they have a solid understanding of the concept. With this activity, students write or try and explain how to solve word problems to their peers. (Bonus: It’s great practice for procedural writing.)

7. Task cards and lots of (retrieval) practice!: One way I have students practice is by sorting and matching equations, strip diagrams and word problems. We also engage in a daily thinking routine, where we analyze a different aspect of a word problem each day of the week. This can include: What is the problem asking? What information is important? What misconceptions do we need to watch out for? What connections can you make? What strategies could we use to solve this? How is this problem similar to other problems we’ve solved?

Additional Resources

I hope you find these strategies helpful, and please share your ideas in the comments. If you enjoyed this article, don’t forget to sign up for notifications, so you never miss out on a posting or resource! Happy Teaching!