Math word problems are an excellent way to practice and hone students’ math and problem solving skills. They provide a unique opportunity for students to apply their math knowledge in real-life scenarios and make connections between the problem and the solution. Math word problems can also be used to help develop critical thinking, logical reasoning, and creative problem solving abilities.
For second-grade students, learning math can be especially challenging because they are still developing their foundational skills. Word problems are a useful tool for helping second-grade students to develop their math skills by presenting them with real-world situations that they can relate to.
In this post, I consulted various sources including AI chatbots and compiled for you this collection of engaging math word problems that are especially useful for students in 2nd grade.
Math word problems for 2nd grade students
1. Sarah has 6 apples. She gives 2 apples to her friend. How many apples does she have left?
Solution: Sarah has 4 apples left.
2. There are 8 birds on a tree. 3 more birds fly in and land on the tree. How many birds are there now?
Solution: There are 11 birds on the tree now.
3. Johnny has 10 toy cars. He wants to give 3 of them to his little brother. How many toy cars will Johnny have left?
Solution: Johnny will have 7 toy cars left.
4. Katie has 4 dolls. Her friend gives her 2 more dolls to play with. How many dolls does Katie have now?
Solution: Katie has 6 dolls now.
5. A pizza has 8 slices. If Sarah eats 3 slices, how many slices are left?
Solution: There are 5 slices of pizza left.
6. There are 12 crayons in a box. If Johnny takes 4 crayons out of the box, how many crayons are left in the box?
Solution: There are 8 crayons left in the box.
7. A bakery has 20 cupcakes. If 5 cupcakes are sold, how many cupcakes are left?
Solution: There are 15 cupcakes left.
8. Lisa has 7 marbles. If she gives 2 marbles to her friend, how many marbles will she have left?
Solution: Lisa will have 5 marbles left.
9. A pencil costs 50 cents. How much will 4 pencils cost?
Solution: 4 pencils will cost $2.00 (4 x 50 cents).
10. There are 16 students in a classroom. If 4 students are absent, how many students are present in the classroom?
Solution: There are 12 students present in the classroom.
11. If a bag of candy has 24 pieces and Lisa has already eaten 9 pieces, how many pieces of candy are left in the bag?
Solution: There are 15 pieces of candy left in the bag.
12. There are 10 red balloons and 8 blue balloons. How many balloons are there in total?
Solution: There are 18 balloons in total.
13. Sarah has 12 stickers. She gives 4 stickers to her brother. How many stickers does Sarah have left?
Solution: Sarah has 8 stickers left.
14. A school bus can hold 20 students. If there are 45 students going on the field trip, how many buses are needed to transport all the students?
Solution: 3 buses are needed to transport all the students (20 x 2 = 40, 45 – 40 = 5, so 3 buses are needed).
15. A store has 30 apples. If 12 apples are sold, how many apples are left?
Solution: There are 18 apples left.
16. Emily has 8 dolls. She wants to give 2 dolls to her friend. How many dolls will Emily have left?
Solution: Emily will have 6 dolls left.
17. A book costs $5. How much money will you need to buy 3 books?
Solution: You will need $15 to buy 3 books (3 x $5).
18. A store has 50 stickers. If 20 stickers are sold, how many stickers are left?
Solution: There are 30 stickers left.
19. David has 10 toy cars. He wants to give 5 of them to his little brother. How many toy cars will David have left?
Solution: David will have 5 toy cars left.
20. A bag of marbles has 50 marbles. If you take out 12 marbles, how many marbles will be left in the bag?
Solution: There will be 38 marbles left in the bag.
21. There are 25 students in a class. If 5 students move away, how many students are left in the class?
Solution: There are 20 students left in the class.
22. There are 16 cupcakes. If 6 cupcakes are eaten, how many cupcakes are left?
Solution: There are 10 cupcakes left.
23. A toy store has 30 stuffed animals. If 8 stuffed animals are sold, how many stuffed animals are left in the store?
Solution: There are 22 stuffed animals left in the store.
24. Alex has 14 stickers. He wants to give 3 of them to his friend. How many stickers will Alex have left?
Solution: Alex will have 11 stickers left.
25. A box of markers has 36 markers. If 18 markers are used, how many markers are left in the box?
Solution: There are 18 markers left in the box.
26. There are 20 books in a library. If 4 books are checked out, how many books are left in the library?
Solution: There are 16 books left in the library.
27. There are 25 balloons at a party. If 7 balloons pop, how many balloons are left?
Solution: There are 18 balloons left.
28. A toy store has 40 action figures. If 15 action figures are sold, how many action figures are left in the store?
Solution: There are 25 action figures left in the store.
29. Sarah has 16 stickers. She wants to give 6 stickers to her cousin. How many stickers will Sarah have left?
Solution: Sarah will have 10 stickers left.
30. A box of crayons has 30 crayons. If 10 crayons are broken, how many crayons are left in the box?
Solution: There are 20 crayons left in the box.
31. There are 18 cookies on a plate. If 3 cookies are eaten, how many cookies are left on the plate?
Solution: There are 15 cookies left on the plate.
32. A garden has 24 flowers. If 8 flowers are picked, how many flowers are left in the garden?
Solution: There are 16 flowers left in the garden.
33. A box of cookies has 36 cookies. If 20 cookies are eaten, how many cookies are left in the box?
Solution: There are 16 cookies left in the box.
34. There are 10 apples in a basket. If 3 apples are taken out of the basket, how many apples are left?
Solution: There are 7 apples left in the basket.
35. A toy store has 60 dolls. If 25 dolls are sold, how many dolls are left in the store?
Solution: There are 35 dolls left in the store.
36. There are 26 birds in a tree. If 7 birds fly away, how many birds are left in the tree?
Solution: There are 19 birds left in the tree
37. A pack of gum has 12 pieces. If 3 pieces are used, how many pieces of gum are left in the pack?
Solution: There are 9 pieces of gum left in the pack.
38. A group of children has 24 candy bars. If they share them equally between 6 children, how many candy bars will each child get?
Solution: Each child will get 4 candy bars.
39. There are 15 chairs in a classroom. If 5 students stand up, how many chairs are still occupied?
Solution: 10 chairs are still occupied.
40. A zoo has 15 monkeys in total. If 4 of them swing from tree to tree, how many monkeys are left in the enclosure?
Solution: There are 11 monkeys left in the enclosure.
41. A pizza parlor makes 30 pizzas a day. If 10 of them are sold before lunchtime, how many pizzas are left to sell for the rest of the day?
Solution: There are 20 pizzas left to sell for the rest of the day.
42. There are 12 children on a playground. If 2 of them go home early, how many children are left playing?
Solution: There are 10 children left playing.
43. A pet store has 20 hamsters in total. If 3 of them are sold, how many hamsters are left in the store?
Solution: There are 17 hamsters left in the store.
44. A classroom has 25 students. If 8 of them go on a field trip, how many students are left in the classroom?
Solution: There are 17 students left in the classroom.
45. A soccer team has 16 players. If 4 of them are sick, how many can play in the game?
Solution: 12 players can play in the game.
46. There are 10 donuts in a box. If 3 are eaten, how many donuts are left in the box?
Solution: There are 7 donuts left in the box.
