Best Free Math Practice for 1st Graders: Worksheets, Games and Apps

Search for free 1st grade math and you'll find thousands of worksheets, apps, videos and games. Most are fine. Few are a good fit for a 6 or 7 year old who's still learning to read directions, and even fewer help your child keep going. Here's how to choose, what's worth using, and what your child will be learning this year.

We make Bobby's Math Club, so we're not neutral, and we've tried to be fair to everyone here. Free sites and apps change, so check each one for current details (as of October 2026).

What makes a good free math resource for a 6 or 7 year old

Free is easy to find. Good is harder. Here's a short checklist you can use on any worksheet, game, app or video:

• It fits your child's level. A 1st grader who finds a page too hard will quit, and one who finds it too easy will drift. Look for a sheet or program that meets your child where they are, and lets them review earlier skills without feeling put back.
• It reads aloud, or uses very few words. At this age, reading can get in the way of the math. Short directions and pictures help, and so does audio.
• It gives feedback right away. Your child can fix a mistake while it's still fresh. An answer key you check together works too.
• It's calm. A countdown clock or a loud scoreboard can make a child who's unsure feel worse. Practice should feel safe to get wrong.
• It's really free. Some sites let you start free, then stop at a paywall. Check what you get without paying, and whether your child needs an account.
• It has a natural stopping point. Sessions that end by themselves make it easier to stop while it's still going well.
• It covers what 1st graders are learning. The Common Core's overview of Grade 1 names four big ideas for the year: adding and subtracting within 20, tens and ones, measuring length, and shapes. Your state's list may differ a little, so your child's teacher is the best guide to the order.

Common Sense Media, a nonprofit that reviews children's media, keeps a list of math games, websites and apps for kids that's worth browsing if you'd like a second opinion on any app.

What 1st graders typically learn

First grade is when adding and subtracting really take off. Your child learns strategies for facts within 20 and sees that a two-digit number is tens and ones. Most 1st graders practice these skills:

• Adding and subtracting within 20. With strategies like counting on and making 10. See adding within 20 and subtracting within 20.
• Story problems. Adding and subtracting stories within 20. See story problems within 20.
• The equal sign. Knowing it means "the same as", and finding missing numbers. See what the equal sign means.
• Tens and ones. Seeing 47 as 4 tens and 7 ones, and counting to 120. See tens and ones.
• Measuring and time. Comparing lengths, and telling time to the hour and half hour. See telling time.
• Shapes and equal parts. What makes a triangle, and halves and quarters. See halves and quarters.

Our What is my kid learning? pages cover every 1st grade skill, with sample questions and ways to help at home.

Where do 1st graders usually need extra help? Often it's thinking the equal sign means "the answer comes next", so 8 = 3 + 5 looks wrong, and counting every object one by one when they could count on. If you notice one of these, a few minutes of focused practice on that skill is worth more than a stack of mixed sheets.

Free options at a glance

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Free printable worksheets

A pencil and paper are a great way to practice. Your child can't tap a wrong answer by accident, there's no screen to compete with, and you can see their thinking.

When you choose free printables, a few things help:

• Pick a single skill per sheet, such as adding within 20, rather than a mixed page.
• Choose sheets with about 10 problems, which is enough practice to learn from and short enough to finish.
• Use an answer key and go over mistakes together the same day.

Paper Practice is how the club does printable worksheets. You print a ten-problem sheet made for your child's level, they solve it with a pencil, and you photograph the page and check the answers. Once you save it, a checked sheet counts toward their progress, the same as practice in the app. There's no packet to buy and no guessing which grade to print. It's part of the club, and unlimited practice is free. See how Paper Practice works.

A few ideas for choosing between formats:

• Online resources are best for instant feedback and read-aloud help.
• Printables are best for screen-free time, car rides and showing your child's handwriting and thinking.
• Free worksheets and paid subscriptions can both work. If a free sheet matches your child's level, you may not need to pay for more.

Math games, apps and websites

Games work well for 1st graders because they turn repeated practice into something children ask for. A game your child chooses to play again is practice that doesn't feel like work. Here are a few free places to start:

• PBS KIDS Games is a free collection of games for young children, including math, with no account needed, at the time of writing.
• Khan Academy offers a free 1st grade math course of videos, articles and practice exercises, and Khan Academy Kids is a free app for ages 2 to 8, per Khan Academy.
• The Math Learning Center offers free math apps such as base-ten pieces and a number rack. They're hands-on tools more than games, and they're useful for showing tens and ones.
• Bobby's Math Club offers unlimited free practice, with every question read aloud, a hint a tap away and no timer.

The honest difference: apps (downloaded to a phone or tablet) are handy for travel and sometimes work offline, while websites work on any computer and don't use up storage. Either is fine. What matters more is whether your child can use it alone, and whether it fits the checklist above.

Games also help with fluency. First graders work toward adding and subtracting within 10 quickly and within 20 with strategies, and short, repeated practice is a friendly way to get there. For choosing among programs, see free math practice programs, ranked.

Choosing free video lessons

A video is the right tool when your child needs a new idea explained. Practice is the right tool once they have it. A short, clear lesson often makes the practice that follows go much better.

Two free places to look: Khan Academy's 1st grade course, and the free 1st grade videos from Math Mammoth, which cover topics like addition facts and telling time. Both are for the right age group, at the time of writing.

Since YouTube has thousands of channels, here is a fair way to choose one:

• Short. Look for videos of about 3 to 8 minutes. A 1st grader's attention is limited.
• One idea at a time. A good lesson teaches one skill, such as making 10 to add, and shows the steps.
• Draws as it explains. Pictures, counters and number lines beat a talking face for this age.
• A calm voice and a steady pace. Fast, loud videos can tire children out.
• Made for the grade. Check that the title names 1st grade or ages 6 to 7.
• Watch it first. Preview a video yourself, and turn off autoplay so the next one isn't chosen for you.

We also make short kid-friendly videos that follow practice. See how our math videos teach.

Free activities at home

Some of the best 1st grade math costs nothing. Try these:

1. Play make 10. Take out the face cards and tens (aces count as 1). Lay out cards and find pairs that add up to 10.
2. Play addition war. Each of you flips two cards and adds them. The higher sum wins the round.
3. Bundle tens. Bundle 10 straws with a rubber band. Show 34 as 3 bundles and 4 loose straws.
4. Count to 120. Start at a number like 87 and count on together.
5. Read the clock. Ask "Is it 3 o'clock or half past 3?" at snack time.
6. Line them up. Order three shoes from shortest to longest.
7. Find the missing number. "I have 8. How many more to make 11?"
8. Draw a story problem. Your child draws "There were 12 apples. We ate 5." Then they say how many are left.

For more ideas, see how to make math fun for kids.

How much and how often

I recommend 5 minutes of practice a day. It doesn't have to be every single day: a few five-minute sessions a week is great too. That's enough time to answer a handful of questions and get feedback on each one. If your child wants to keep going, let them. Read how often your child should practice for the reasons.

Motivation matters as much as minutes. Some ways to help:

• Let your child choose. Paper or screen, game or worksheet. A choice gives them a say.
• Stop while it's fun. Ending early leaves them wanting more.
• Praise the thinking, not just the answer: "I like how you made 10 first."
• Do it together sometimes. Even a few minutes beside them helps.
• Treat mistakes as normal. If your child feels worried about math, overcoming math anxiety has gentle ideas.

Why practice at all? Because 1st grade is when addition facts start to become automatic, and children who feel confident now tend to keep trying later. Why math fluency matters early explains more.

Free help from a person

If your child needs more than a worksheet, ask their teacher what to focus on. Many public libraries also offer free online homework help, usually with just a library card. Hours and grades covered vary, so check your library's website for "homework help".

How Bobby's Math Club fits

I built Bobby's Math Club, and I use it with my own kids a few times every week. It's meant to be the five-minute habit, and it works well next to free videos, games and everyday math:

• Unlimited practice, free. No limit on how much your child can do.
• Read aloud. Every question, hint and explanation can be heard.
• Kind feedback. A hint when needed, and a short explanation after each question.
• Paper Practice. Screen-free sheets that count toward progress.
• Progress emails. Plain-English notes on what your child practiced.

It's made for PK-5, and it's practice rather than video lessons. You can pair it with Khan Academy's videos when a new idea needs explaining.

Have a child in another grade? There's a page like this one for Pre-K, kindergarten, 2nd grade, 3rd grade, 4th grade, and 5th grade.

Questions parents ask

Sources

• National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers (2010). Common Core State Standards for Mathematics: Grade 1 Introduction.
• Common Sense Media. Best Math Games, Websites, and Apps for Kids.
• The Math Learning Center. Free Apps from MLC.