Teach your Grade 5 students how to confidently solve word problems using 5 clear, step-by-step strategies. This ready-to-use unit includes explicit lesson slides, worksheets, and assessment to support structured, effective teaching.

This comprehensive Year 5 unit is designed to explicitly teach students how to approach and solve worded math problems, not just practise them. Each lesson breaks down a strategy with clear modelling, guided practice, and independent application.

What’s Included

• 5 structured lesson presentations (PowerPoint)
• Explicit teaching of key problem solving strategies:
  • Guess and Check
  • Drawings and Diagrams
  • Working Backwards
  • Draw a Table
  • Look for a Pattern

• Worksheets for each strategy to reinforce learning
• Consolidation lesson to review all strategies
• End-of-unit assessment
  

Lesson Structure

Each lesson follows a consistent, easy-to-use format:

• Clear learning intention
• Review of prior knowledge
• Step-by-step explanation of the strategy
• Modelled examples
• Guided practice
• Independent practice with worksheets
• Discussion and reflection questions

Why Teachers Love This Resource

• Takes the guesswork out of teaching problem solving
• Builds student confidence with structured support
• Moves beyond worksheets to explicit skill development
• Easy to implement with ready-to-use lessons
• Flexible for whole class, small group, or intervention
  

Perfect For:

• Teaching students how to approach word problems
• Introducing or reinforcing problem solving strategies
• Supporting students who struggle with multi-step problems
• Building confidence and independence in math
  

Time-Saving & Practical

• Each lesson: approximately 40–60 minutes
• Worksheets: approximately 20 minutes
• Designed to fit easily into your existing math block
  

Learning Focus

Students will learn how to:

• choose an appropriate problem solving strategy
• apply strategies step-by-step
• check and reflect on their solutions
• build confidence when tackling unfamiliar problems