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Number Bonds: How Numbers Break Into Parts

Students discover that every number can break into two parts — and those parts always add back up to the whole — the big idea that connects adding and subtracting.

Grade 1Addition35 minutes1 class periodGradual ReleaseExplicit teaching4 StandardsCommon Core
Start the Lesson
Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Break a whole into two parts.
  • ✓Know parts add up to the whole.
  • ✓Find a missing part.
  • ✓Connect bonds to adding and subtracting.
Essential Question

The number 7 can be 3 and 4, or 5 and 2, or 6 and 1. How can one number be made of different parts?

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Model · Interactive Tool

The Number Bond

Project this and change the whole and one part. Watch the other part change — the two parts always add up to the whole!

🔗 Break the whole into two partsTry it
734
Whole: 7
One part: 3

The Lesson · Gradual Release (I Do · We Do · You Do)

35 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Launch — Break It Apart

5 min

7 crayons in two hands — how many ways can you split them?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Split a group into two hands.
  • Show different splits.
  • Set the goal: number bonds.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Split the group.
  • Notice the parts.
  • Predict the bond.
2

I Do — Whole & Parts

10 min

Teacher models.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Show the whole on top, parts below.
  • Change a part; the other changes.
  • Parts add to the whole.

🎒 Student Actions

  • See whole and parts.
  • Watch parts change.
  • Add parts to whole.
3

We Do — Bond Together

10 min

Class drives the Number Bond.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Find all the ways to make a number.
  • Find a missing part.
  • Write the addition sentence.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Find the parts.
  • Find a missing part.
  • Write it.
4

You Do — On Your Own

10 min

Students make bonds.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Have students break numbers into parts.
  • Find missing parts.
  • List ways to make a number.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Break numbers.
  • Find missing parts.
  • List the ways.
5

Close — Close

5 min

Missing part.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Give a whole and one part.
  • Students find the other.
  • Hand out the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Find the missing part.
  • Explain the bond.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics, including the Standards for Mathematical Practice.

CCSS
1.OA.8

Determine the unknown whole number in an addition or subtraction equation.

CCSS
1.OA.6

Add and subtract within 20; use decomposing a number.

CCSS
1.OA.1

Use addition and subtraction within 20 to solve problems.

CCSS
1.OA.7

Understand the meaning of the equal sign.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Split real objects into two parts.
  • Sentence frame: “___ and ___ make ___.”
  • Show parts with two hands.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with wholes up to 5.
  • Use two-color counters.
  • Find one missing part.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • List every bond for 10.
  • Find missing parts quickly.
  • Write both add and subtract sentences.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Projector / board
  • 📓Math notebooks
  • 💻The Number Bond
  • 🟡Two-color counters
  • ✏️Pencils
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

wholethe total amountparta piece of the wholenumber bonda way to show parts and a wholebreak apartto split into partsmissing partthe part you need to findequalthe same amountcombineto put togetherdecomposeto break a number apart
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
The whole is 8. One part is 5. What is the other part?
3 (because 5 + 3 = 8).
QUESTION 2
Do the two parts of a number bond add up to the whole?
Yes — the parts always add up to the whole.
QUESTION 3
Name two parts that make 6.
Any bond such as 4 and 2, 5 and 1, or 3 and 3.

Going deeper? Rainbow to 10.

Have students find every pair of parts that makes 10 and connect them with rainbow arcs (0–10, 1–9, 2–8…). A printable make-10 rainbow is in the Math library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Number BondsFlip
Card 1
Term
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Meaning
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Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Number BondsQuiz
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1 / 6
Question 1
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Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Number BondsPrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: break apart, combine, decompose, equal, missing part, number bond, part, whole
  1. the part you need to find
  2. to put together
  3. to break a number apart
  4. to split into parts
  5. the total amount
  6. a piece of the whole
  7. the same amount
  8. a way to show parts and a whole

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. The whole is 8. One part is 5. What is the other part?
  2. Do the two parts of a number bond add up to the whole?
  3. Name two parts that make 6.
Answer key — Part A: 1) missing part · 2) combine · 3) decompose · 4) break apart · 5) whole · 6) part · 7) equal · 8) number bond
Part B: 1) 3 (because 5 + 3 = 8). 2) Yes — the parts always add up to the whole. 3) Any bond such as 4 and 2, 5 and 1, or 3 and 3.