Equal Groups Word Problems Worksheets for 3rd Grade

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Grade 3MathMultiplication & DivisionCCSS 3.OA.A.1CCSS 3.OA.A.3

Skill: Solving short word problems about equal groups with multiplication

Preview of the Equal Groups Word Problems printable worksheet
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Teaching tips and what to try next

Good for third graders who understand equal groups from Equal Groups Multiplication and are ready to read short stories. A quick sketch of the groups, even just circles with tally marks inside, often clears up stories where the group size comes first. A wider mix of stories is in Multiplication Word Problems.

10 versions, each with its own answer key

Same skill and layout, a fresh set of problems in every version, so children can keep practicing without repeating a page. Problems are not repeated between versions unless a skill has only a small number of possible problems (for example, the addition facts within 10).

Download all 10 versions (one PDF)All 10 answer keys (PDF)

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About this worksheet

Equal groups are the heart of early multiplication. Four bags with 6 apples in each bag make 24 apples in all. Third graders are expected to interpret products as the total of equal groups and to solve multiplication word problems, and this third grade worksheet puts both ideas into short stories.

The page has eight word problems. Each one describes equal groups of everyday things, such as books on shelves, crayons in boxes, seeds in pots or bikes on racks. Children write a multiplication equation and the answer with its unit. The group sizes stay within basic facts, so the focus stays on reading the story and setting up the equation. Each of the ten versions has new numbers and its own answer key.

How to use it: have your child underline the number of groups and circle how many are in each group before writing the equation. Drawing a quick sketch of the groups helps when the wording feels tricky. After solving, ask whether the answer would change if the numbers swapped places, which points toward the commutative property.

The answer key shows every equation answer with its unit. For picture practice with drawn groups, try our Equal Groups Multiplication worksheet. For a wider mix of multiplication stories, try our Multiplication Word Problems worksheet.