problem solving questions kindergarten

Kindergarten Lessons

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Math Teaching/Learning

KINDERGARTEN PROBLEM SOLVING

Learning how to approach and solve problems early in life, not only helps children enjoy and look forward to sorting them out, it also helps them make and keep friends.

Preschool and kindergarten problem solving activities give children an opportunity to use skills they have learned previously and give you an opening to teach new problem solving strategies.

Introduce the vocabulary of solving problems with stories, puppets and everyday situations that occur. “We only have 10 apples but there are 20 students. This is a problem . Let’s think of some ways that we can solve this problem ?”

Use terms like, “a different way, let’s brainstorm, that’s a challenge, let’s think of some different solutions”.

How do I develop a problem solving approach?

Asking children questions such as , “How would you…?” or “Show me how you could…?”, help set the stage for teaching with a problem solving approach. Keep problem solving topics about subjects that interest the students. Kids are constantly trying to problem solve as they play.

Students are learning to:

• Identify problems or challenges
• Fact find (what do I know, what have I tried)
• Think of ways to solve the problem (brainstorm, creative thinking, generate ideas)
• Test their ideas

What preschool and kindergarten problem solving strategies can I teach?

Young children need real objects, pictures, diagrams, and models to solve problems. Start with real objects and move slowly to diagrams and pictures. Any of the following problem solving strategies will help them work through the four steps above:

• using objects
• acting the problem out
• looking for patterns
• guessing and checking
• drawing pictures
• making a graph
• teach with projects

Play creates classroom opportunities for problem solving

Perhaps a child is getting frustrated as he/she plays with blocks. To help him/her focus on the problem ask questions such as:

• What are you trying to do with your blocks?
• What isn’t working?
• What have you tried?
• Can you think of another way to stack the blocks?
• What else can you try?

Encourage creative thinking

Reinforce creative thinking, not results. The ability to solve problems and think creativity is important.

Talk about the different ways the child tried to solve the problem rather than the outcome. “Joe tried three different ways to stack the blocks. That was a great effort, Joe.”

Social classroom problem solving opportunities are abundant…

• Identify the problem – – Talk about the problem. For instance, some children may be worried because other kids are hiding the center markers for the play center and giving them to their friends. Other kids are not getting turns.
• Fact find – – There are only 4 center markers for the play center because it is small and more than 4 kids would be too crowded. Some kids are hiding them so they can play with the same children each time.
• Brainstorm ideas – How can everyone have turns? What ideas do you have? What could we try?
• Test the idea – Let’’s try that idea and meet again tomorrow and see how it’s working.

Investigating and Problem Solving

Using short periods of time examining and investigating objects, such as feathers or rocks, captures children’s attention and challenges them to inquire, to develop mind sets of being problem solvers and to think independently. Find a sample lesson here…

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Check Out These 50 Kindergarten Math Word Problems of the Day

Sue has 5 markers. Tom has 3 markers.

Opening your daily math lesson with a word problem of the day is an excellent way to set the stage for learning! Incorporate them at the start of your math block to build confidence, critical thinking skills, and a learning community. Students will get used to reading for meaning, while also identifying key information. Encourage students to write out equations and draw pictures to explain their thinking, since this helps them see the light when they are stuck!

Topics in these kindergarten math word problems cover addition, subtraction, comparison, number sense, comparing numbers, and measurement. Want this entire set of kindergarten math word problems in one easy document? Get your free PowerPoint bundle by submitting your email here . All you need to do is post one of the problems on your whiteboard or projector screen. Then let kids take it from there.

50 Kindergarten Math Word Problems

1. sue has 2 markers. tom has 3 markers. how many markers do they have all together.

2. There are 4 red blocks on the rug. There are 4 yellow blocks on the rug. How many blocks are on the rug in all?

3. Sam has 3 marbles. Tim gave Sam 1 marble. How many marbles does Sam have now?

4. One cat is in the yard. 4 more cats come into the yard. How many cats are in the yard now?

5. Jill had 7 toy cars. She got 3 more for her birthday. How many toy cars does Jill have now?

6. Ava has 2 more books than Lucy. Lucy has 6 books. How many books does Ava have?

7. There are 7 red chairs and 2 green chairs at the table. How many chairs are at the table all together?

8. Pete put 2 pencils in his desk. There were 3 pencils in there already. How many pencils are in Pete’s desk now?

9. Tina has 4 jackets at home and 2 jackets at school. How many jackets does Tina have in all?

10. Bob has 5 more stamps than Bill. Bill has 2 stamps. How many stamps does Bob have?

11. James has 5 flowers. He gives Lisa 3 flowers. How many flowers does James have left?

12. 8 birds were on the playground. 5 birds flew away. How many birds are still on the playground?

13. Karen had 4 peanuts. She ate 3 of them. How many peanuts does Karen have left?

14. There are 6 boxes on the truck. 4 boxes are blue. The rest are green. How many boxes are green?

15. Frank has 7 donuts. If he gives 3 away, how many donuts will he have left?

16. Tim had 5 balls at home. He took 1 ball to school. How many balls did he leave at home?

17. There are 10 pieces of fruit in the bowl. 2 are apples. The rest of the fruit are oranges. How many oranges are in the bowl?

18. Kris has 5 stickers. She gives Dave 4 of her stickers. How many stickers does Kris have left?

19. Lisa drew 4 pictures. Kelly drew 6 pictures. Who drew more pictures? How many more?

20. Malik has 10 balls of clay. He gives 10 of the clay balls to Rob. How many clay balls does Malik have now?

21. Sara wants to make 8 cards. She already made 4 of them. How many more cards does Sara need to make?

22. The class sang 5 songs. They want to sing 10 songs. How many more songs does the class want to sing?

23. Rose had some beads on her bracelet. She got 3 more beads and put them on. Now she has 6 beads all together. How many beads did Rose have at the start?

24. Mr. Jones had 4 pens. He bought some more pens. Now he has 6 pens. How many pens did he buy?

25. Lilly has 3 pink hats, 2 white hats, and 1 purple hat. How many hats does Lilly have in all?

26. Pat has 4 erasers. Ken has 2 erasers. Jason has 2 erasers. How many erasers do they have all together?

27. There were some animals in the barnyard. There were 5 goats, 4 cows, and 1 sheep. How many animals were in the barnyard all together?

28. South Street has some houses on it. 3 houses are blue, 1 house is gray, and 4 houses are white. How many houses are on South Street?

29. Meg has a cat, 2 dogs, and a parrot. How many pets does Meg have?

30. Ken likes to plant trees. He planted 7 pine trees, 2 oak trees, and 0 spruce trees. How many trees did Ken plant all together?

31. Ms. Matho gave her class this pattern and asked them to finish it: 3, 4, 5, 6, __, __. What should the last two numbers be?

32. Ian has a pattern on his shirt. It was blue stripe, red stripe, blue stripe, red stripe. What color is the next stripe?

33. The countdown started. The class called out, “10, 9, 8, 7, 6…” What were the next two numbers they called out?

34. Joan was counting her socks by two’s. She had 4 pair of socks. How many socks is that all together?

35. Faith’s hat has a letter pattern on it. It goes A,B,C, A,B,C. What letter comes after B in the pattern?

36. Larry has 12 stamps. Barry has 11 stamps. Who has more stamps?

37. There were 20 yellow backpacks. There were 19 blue backpacks. Which color were most of the backpacks?

38. Jessica had some crayons. Pam had 15 crayons. Jessica had 2 more crayons than Pam. How many crayons did Jessica have?

39. Stan had 14 pennies. Dave had 9 pennies. Who had less pennies?

40. Beth was 8 years old. Her sister, Lori was 10 years old. Who is older? How much older?

41. The stick was 10 inches long. It was painted red and white. 5 inches of the stick were red. How much of the stick was white?

42. Frisky the cat weighs 6 pounds. Mittens the cat weighs 9 pounds. Which cat weighs more? How much more?

43. 17 is Chan’s lucky number. The number that comes before Chan’s is Ming’s lucky number. What is Ming’s lucky number?

44. The buses are all lined up in number order. The #12 bus is Juan’s bus. What number bus comes right after Juan’s bus?

45. Stacey practiced soccer for 6 hours last week. Emily practiced soccer for 4 hours last week. Who practiced soccer longer? How much longer?

46. Mrs. Tang’s class got 18 new books from the book fair. Mr. Smith’s class got 15 new books from the book fair. Which class got more new books from the book fair?

47. There are 10 children at the lunch table. 4 are boys. The rest are girls. How many children at the lunch table are girls?

48. The doors in the school are in number order. Carol is in Room #11. Delia is in the room right before Carol’s. What room is Delia in?

49. There are 3 boxes. The pink box has 4 balls in it. The orange box has 2 balls in it. The black box has 2 more balls than the pink box. Which box has the most balls? How many are in that box?

50. Jon likes to draw. He does 1 drawing every day after school. How many drawings does he do every week?

Enjoying these kindergarten math word problems check out our kindergarten hub for even more resources..

Get a PPT version of these word problems.

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Check Out These 50 First-Grade Math Word Problems of the Day

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50 Math Problems for Kindergarteners

Practice your math skills with these 50 math problems for kindergarteners , covering counting, addition, subtraction, place value, measurement, and geometry! Answers included.

Author Michelle Griczika

Published November 6, 2023

Published Nov 6, 2023

Key takeaways

• In kindergarten, mastering counting and understanding the basics of addition and subtraction set the foundation for future mathematical concepts.
• Utilizing visual aids, like ten frames and shape recognition, can significantly aid in understanding numbers and geometric shapes.
• Consider using our math app to supplement your child’s kindergarten math skills.

Table of contents

• Key Takeaways
• Addition and Subtraction
• Place Value
• Measurement

Get ready to take on 50 kindergarten math problems ! These exercises are designed to help young learners develop essential math skills while exploring counting, basic addition and subtraction, shape recognition, place value, and measurement in a fun and interactive way. 

We’ve put together 50 engaging math problems for kindergarten to prepare your young learner! These exercises cover five essential skills that every kindergartner needs to master before stepping into first grade. They include:

• Counting : a foundational skill introduced in kindergarten.
• Addition and Subtraction : which start to build numerical skills in kindergarten.
• Place Value: designed to set a strong foundation for the basis of our number system.
• Basic Measurements : introduced to help kindergarten students understand size and comparisons.
• Shape Recognition : a key area designed to help kindergarteners identify basic shapes.

From geometry problems to counting practice, we have a mixture of kindergarten math word problems for your child to practice at home. Once you are done, check your work with our answer sheet.

 Let’s dive in!

Section 1: Counting

Counting helps us understand numbers and how many things we have, like siblings or how many steps we take.

Section 2: Addition & Subtraction

Adding numbers helps us combine different amounts to find the sum, giving us the result of putting them together. Subtraction allows us to see the difference between two numbers by subtracting one value from another, helping us understand the remaining amount.

Section 3: Place Value

Ten frames show us the value of each digit in a number, helping us understand how they add up to make a bigger number.

1. Look at the ten frames. What number do you see?

2. Look at the ten frames. What number do you see?

3. Look at the ten frames. What number do you see?

4. Look at the ten frames. What number do you see?

5. Look at the ten frames. What number do you see?

6. Look at the ten frames. What number do you see?

7. Look at the ten frames. What number do you see?

8. Look at the ten frames. What number do you see?

9. Look at the ten frames. What number do you see?

10. Look at the ten frames. What number do you see?

Section 4: Measurement

When we measure things, we use the words’ bigger’ and ‘smaller’ to compare them and see which is larger or smaller in size, amount, or value.

1. Which polar bear is bigger?

2. Which snake is bigger?

3. Which Cat is bigger?

4. Which octopus is bigger?

5. Which penguin is bigger?

6. Which frog is smaller?

7. Which turtle is smaller?

8. Which Eagle is smaller?

9. Which Parrot is smaller?

10. Which leopard is smaller?

Section 5: Geometry

We can identify and name different shapes by looking at their features, such as the number of sides and how they are arranged.

1. Name the shape.

2. Name the shape.

3. Name the shape.

4. Name the shape.

5. Name the shape.

6. Name the shape.

7. Name the shape.

8. Name the shape.

9. Name the shape.

10. Name the shape.

Lesson credits

Michelle Griczika

Michelle Griczika is a seasoned educator and experienced freelance writer. Her years teaching first and fifth grades coupled with her double certification in elementary and early childhood education lend depth to her understanding of diverse learning stages. Michelle enjoys running in her free time and undertaking home projects.

Parents, sign up for a DoodleMath subscription and see your child become a math wizard!

Place Value Answer Sheet

Measurement Answer Sheet

Geometry answer sheet.

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Word Problems Activities for Kindergarten

Strengthen your child's word problems skills with interactive educational resources for word problems for Kindergarten graders online. These learning resources include fun games and worksheets with eye-catching visuals and characters. Get started to help your Kindergarten grader master this concept by engaging their critical thinking.

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Addition and Subtraction Word Problems

Represent 'Add To' Scenarios Game

Learn to solve math problems through our 'Represent 'Add To' Scenarios' game.

Solve 'Add To' Scenarios Game

Add more arrows to your child’s math quiver by solving 'Add To' scenarios.

Find the Sum Using Part-Part-Whole Model Worksheet

Combine math learning with adventure by solving to find the sum using 'Part-Part-Whole' model.

Write Equations Using Part-Part-Whole Model Worksheet

Learn number sense at the speed of lightning by writing equations using 'Part-Part-Whole' model.

All Word Problems Resources

Adding One by Making a Model Game

Treat yourself to an immersive learning experience with our 'Adding One by Making a Model' game.

Adding Within 5 by Making a Model Game

Add more arrows to your child’s math quiver by adding within 5 by making a model.

Represent Word Problems as Math Expressions Worksheet

Dive into this worksheet by practicing to represent word problems as math expressions.

Identify Math Expression for Word Problems Worksheet

Learners must identify math expressions for word problems to enhance their math skills.

Model and Add (Within 10) Game

Unearth the wisdom of mathematics by learning how to model and add (within 10).

Word Problems: Subtracting One Game

Sharpen your math skills with the 'Word Problems: Subtracting One' game.

Story Problems on Addition and Subtraction Worksheet

Solve story problems on addition and subtraction to strengthen your math skills.

Make a Story Worksheet

Combine math learning with adventure by practicing to make a story.

Word Problems: Subtracting Within 10 Game

Enjoy the marvel of math-multiverse by practicing to solve word problems on subtracting within 10.

Create Your Own Word Problems Worksheet

Put your skills to the test by practicing to create your own word problems.

Choose the Correct Operation— Add or Subtract Worksheet

Make math practice a joyride by choosing the correct operation— Add or Subtract.

Represent 'Put Together' Scenarios Game

Have your own math-themed party by learning how to represent 'Put Together' scenarios.

Select the Correct Model Worksheet

Pack your math practice time with fun by selecting the correct model.

Represent the Scenarios Using Equations Worksheet

This downloadable worksheet is designed to represent the given scenarios using equations.

Solve 'Put Together' Scenarios Game

Shine bright in the math world by learning how to solve 'Put Together' scenarios.

Represent 'Take Apart' Scenarios Game

Kids must represent 'Take Apart' scenarios to practice subtraction.

Complete the Word Problem Model Worksheet

Boost your ability to complete the word problem model by printing this playful worksheet.

Complete the Model to Write Equations Worksheet

Be on your way to become a mathematician by practicing to complete the model to write equations.

Solve 'Take Apart' Scenarios Game

Take the pressure off by simplifying subtraction by solving 'Take Apart' scenarios.

Complete the Model Using Clues Worksheet

Assess your math skills by completing the model using clues in this worksheet.

Write the Equation using Clues Worksheet

Be on your way to become a mathematician by practicing to write the equation using clues.

Use Clues to Complete the Model Worksheet

Help your child revise subtraction by solving to use clues to complete the model.

Solve Word Problems on Comparison Worksheet

Put your skills to the test by practicing to solve word problems on comparison.

Complete the Bar Model Worksheet

Dive into this fun-filled printable worksheet by practicing to complete the bar model.

Complete Part-Part-Whole Model Worksheet

Learners must complete 'Part-Part-Whole' models to enhance their math skills.

Select the Correct Equation Worksheet

Dive into this fun-filled printable worksheet by selecting the correct equation.

Solve Word Problems Using Bar Models Worksheet

Dive into this fun-filled printable worksheet by practicing to solve word problems using bar models.

Use Bar Models to Compare and Solve Worksheet

This downloadable worksheet is designed to help you use bar models to compare and solve.

Add or Subtract within 5: Summer Word Problems Worksheet

Summer-themed worksheet for students to practice adding or subtracting within 5 through word problems.

Add or Subtract within 10: Summer Word Problems Worksheet

Summer-themed worksheet challenging students to solve addition or subtraction problems within 10.

Add or Subtract within 5: Halloween Word Problems Worksheet

Spooky-themed worksheet to practice adding and subtracting within 5 using Halloween word problems.

Add or Subtract within 10: Halloween Word Problems Worksheet

Engage in this Halloween-themed worksheet, solving fun addition and subtraction problems within 10.

Add or Subtract within 5: Christmas Word Problems Worksheet

Fun, festive worksheet for students to practice addition and subtraction within 5, Christmas style!

Add or Subtract within 10: Christmas Word Problems Worksheet

Engage in festive math fun with this worksheet, solving addition and subtraction problems within 10, Christmas theme!

Add or Subtract within 5: Shopping Word Problems Worksheet

This worksheet features shopping-themed word problems, requiring addition or subtraction within 5.

Add or Subtract within 10: Shopping Word Problems Worksheet

Exciting worksheet tasking students to solve shopping-themed addition and subtraction problems within 10.

Add or Subtract within 5: Travel Word Problems Worksheet

Engaging travel-themed worksheet focused on solving addition and subtraction problems within 5.

Add or Subtract within 10: Travel Word Problems Worksheet

This worksheet combines travel-themed word problems with addition and subtraction exercises for numbers within 10.

Add or Subtract within 5: Sports Word Problems Worksheet

Engaging sports-themed worksheet focusing on solving addition and subtraction problems within 5.

Add or Subtract within 10: Sports Word Problems Worksheet

Engage in this sports-themed worksheet, mastering addition and subtraction within 10 through word problems!

Add or Subtract within 5: Cooking Word Problems Worksheet

Engage in this fun cooking-themed worksheet, solving addition or subtraction problems within 5!

Add or Subtract within 10: Cooking Word Problems Worksheet

A fun, cooking-themed worksheet where students solve addition and subtraction problems within 10.

Add or Subtract within 5: Winter Word Problems Worksheet

Engaging winter-themed worksheet for students to practice addition and subtraction within 5.

Add or Subtract within 10: Winter Word Problems Worksheet

Engaging winter-themed worksheet helping students to master addition and subtraction within 10.

Add or Subtract within 5: Easter Word Problems Worksheet

Easter-themed worksheet for students to solve addition and subtraction problems within 5.

Add or Subtract within 10: Easter Word Problems Worksheet

Engaging Easter-themed worksheet to solve addition and subtraction problems within 10.

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Kindergarten Problem Solving Skills! (Freebies!)

07.16.2013 by Jessica Kings //

The “Problem of the Day” is probably one of my favorite routines for the classroom!  I ended up starting this routine as prep work for the story problems that are on the Kindergarten IOWA test… and my kids just love it!  It’s the perfect introduction to mental math for little Kinder minds!

I know a lot of teachers do math journals with their kids, which is somewhat similar.  I have thought about doing those, but unfortunately the IOWA Test doesn’t allow for students to use scrap paper to solve their math problems, so I use my problem of the day to focus on counting with our fingers.

(Obviously when I teach my addition and subtraction units, we do many more hands on activities, but this is a quick five minute review… or introduction!  I actually use the problem of the day with my class long before I teach my addition and subtraction units!)

Anyway… back to this quick routine!   (I promise, it takes way longer to explain than it actually takes to do!)

I pick a student to be in the problem, and replace the name in the story with their name.

Then, I have the students turn to their partner for a turn and talk (I have assigned partners in the classroom which change monthly.)  I tell the class this little poem:

(This helps avoid the students all saying “I don’t have a partner!” when someone is absent or on the computer.)  I tell them to be sure that both their knees are touching – this also helps to make sure that they’re looking at their partner and focused!

Then, I’ll pick a partner to go first (perhaps the partner with longer/shorter hair).  That student has to tell their partner the answer and explain their reasoning for it.  For example, “I know the answer is two because I started with five fingers up, then put three fingers back down.”

It really interesting to hear the kids reasoning behind their answer.  After giving them enough time to discuss, I count backwards from five so the students finish up their answer.

Next: it’s time to see who was listening!  I call on students to explain their partner’s answer to me!  This really improves their listening skills!  I then repeat visa-versa and have the other partner explain their answer.

The kids just love this routine… they really love hearing their names in the story and sharing their answers/explanations with their partner.  And the best part… it really improved their listening and math skills and it made a major difference in my IOWA Test scores!!

Here’s a quick preview of how cute the questions look… and they’re super easy to cut as well!

Print them, laminate, and cut the paper into fourths.   I keep my problems organized by hole punching the corner of each card and using a binder ring to hold them together.

Then, each day I just turn one page and read the next problem.

To see the bundle for the whole year, click on this picture:

To see each individual month, click the pictures below!  Scroll down to April to grab a free month!!!

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July 16, 2013 at 12:49 am

Looks great! [email protected]

July 16, 2013 at 1:57 am

This will be great for my JK students who aren't ready for math journals!

July 16, 2013 at 1:59 pm

OH so happy for these! I just added them to my cart! They look awesome! Thank you!!! Carolyn Kindergarten: Holding Hands and Sticking Together

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Kindergarten Word Problems Worksheets

Kindergarten word problems worksheets is the best practice material for kindergarten students as it helps them relate to real-life situations which in turn enhances their problem-solving skills. Kindergarten word problem math worksheets consist of questions related to various topics which are not just good for math but also help students develop their critical thinking and reasoning skills. The variety of questions in kindergarten worksheets make these worksheets, the best study material for the kids.

Benefits of Kindergarten Word Problems Math Worksheets

Kindergarten word problems worksheets consist of questions that focus on developing the core concepts of the student. These kindergarten math worksheets are the best study material for students as it helps them relate to real-life situations thus helping them understand the applications of these topics.

Printable PDF for Kindergarten Word Problems Math Worksheets

Kindergarten word problems worksheet consists of a detailed solution set and the PDF versions can be downloaded for free.

• Kindergarten Math Worksheet Word Problems
• Word Problems Worksheet for Kindergarten
• Kindergarten Math Word Problems Worksheet
• Word Problems Math Worksheet for Kindergarten

Interactive Kindergarten Word Problems Worksheets

• Kindergarten Word Problems Worksheet on Addition of 2-Digit Numbers
• Word Problems Kindergarten Worksheet on Subtraction of 2-Digit Numbers
• Word Problems on 2-Digit Multiplication Worksheet for Kindergarten
• Word Problems Multiplication Worksheet for Kindergarten

Explore more topics at Cuemath's Math Worksheets .

How to Teach Problem Solving in Kindergarten

Teaching kids to be independent thinkers is a huge part of education.  We want students to be able to solve their own “problems” without relying on adults for help.  While many kindergarteners aren't ready for complex problem solving, we can teach them how to address their own challenges on a smaller scale.  Keep reading for some tips on how to teach problem solving in kindergarten.

Tips for Teaching Problem Solving in Kindergarten

Learning how to problem solve is an advanced skill that people work on throughout their lives.  We definitely shouldn't expect children to be perfect in this skill!  However, your students can definitely start to understand that they can solve some of their small problems without adult intervention. Here are a few tips for how to teach problem solving in kindergarten.

1. Focus on Common Kindergarten Problems

When people think of solving problems in kindergarten, they often focus on conflict resolution between students.  However, in kindergarten, there can be a wide range of challenges that students experience during the day. For young students, this often means turning to an adult for help.

Procedural – Kindergartners are very routine-oriented.  When there is a small bump in the daily routines and procedures, the default is to ask the teacher what to do. These problems could include school supply issues or misplaced items.

Personal – Whether it’s untied shoes or complicated emotions, there are a variety of personal challenges that students experience throughout the school day.  These could include personal injury, self-care challenges, and emotional regulation difficulties.

Interpersonal – Kindergarten can be a challenging time for students who are learning to interact with their peers!  Students might experience problems related to turn-taking, making shared decisions, and working in groups. These are often the small problems that result in tattling.

2. Identify Your Preferred Solutions

Before teaching problem-solving skills to your students, take some time to identify the solutions that would be preferable in your classroom.  For example, when a child finds a lost school supply on the ground, would you prefer that they try to find the correct location for it, put it in your classroom Lost and Found bucket, or set it on your desk?

Since many of the challenges kindergartners experience can be procedural, it’s helpful to teach them appropriate solution options that fit within your classroom management system . For interpersonal problems, you might want to identify solutions that fit within your school’s conflict resolution procedures.

3. Teach the Steps of Problem Solving

Once you’ve identified the problems and solutions you’d like to discuss with your students, it’s time for the instruction!  Teach your students the three easy steps of solving a problem:

First, they need to stop what they are doing.  This helps them focus on the challenge they are facing.

Next, they need to think about the problem and possible solutions. Problems and solutions at school can often be different than those at home or other places.

Finally, they need to choose the best solution for their problem. They should consider how their solutions impact those around them.

These simple steps are easy for students to remember so they are more likely to use them!  It's a good idea to keep these reminders posted as visual support in the classroom so students can reference them throughout the school year.

4. Practice with Real-Life Scenarios

Now that you’ve introduced the steps to problem-solving, it’s time to practice using real-life examples and scenarios!  Introduce a common problem that your students might experience in the classroom, on the playground, or even in the lunchroom.  Discuss the problem so that all students can understand the challenge that needs to be addressed.  

Once your students can identify the problem that needs to be solved, you can discuss possible solutions.  It’s helpful for students to learn that there can be different ways to solve a problem.  Sometimes students are hesitant to address challenges without adult intervention because they want to know what the “right” thing is to do.

Finally, it’s time for the students to choose the best solution.  Students should think about how their solution will impact those around them and find the best option. You can discuss why this particular choice is the best option for the scenario.  

After discussing this real-life scenario together as a class, you can also encourage students to practice independently. Invite your students to complete an independent practice worksheet to show how they would solve the problem.  

5. Repeat and Remind

It’s an ongoing process to teach students how to be more independent thinkers and problem solvers.  This process of discussing real-life situations will be ongoing in your classroom.  Take opportunities to repeat your instruction whenever you can!  

Consider modeling for your students when there is a problem that you need to solve as a teacher.  This helps them see that you go through the same three steps of problem solving! If a challenge arises that involves the whole class, you might also decide to discuss this together.

If you created an anchor chart during your class discussion of scenarios, you can keep those on display in your classroom.  Problem solving posters can serve as a helpful reminder to your students when they find themselves in a challenging situation.

Problem Solving Printables for Kindergarten

Would you like to help your students become more independent in addressing their own challenges?  I have created a resource to make it easy to teach problem solving in kindergarten.  

These posters and worksheets will help your students practice problem solving with engaging and relevant scenarios.  Every classroom is different and each teacher sets specific classroom expectations. This resource is editable so that you can customize the problem solving scenarios to fit the needs of your classroom.  

Would you like to take a closer look at everything included in this resource?  You can find it in the Teaching Exceptional Kinders shop or on Teachers Pay Teachers .

Save These Kindergarten Problem-Solving Ideas

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Solving Word Problems in Kindergarten

Apr 23, 2020

From real objects in the physical world , to quantitative pictures , to story mats and acting out problems , each step in the developmental journey takes our littles closer to confidence in the word problem solving process. Each step is important so that we help them arrive in the proper way instead of trying to force application of word problem skills too soon.

To help students take the next step of their word problem solving, we’ve created the My Math Word Problem Journal , which is developmentally appropriate for Kindergarten students at the end of the first semester or the beginning of the second semester.

Buy it now for just $5.99!

This journal contains 75 days worth of journal experiences that reinforce concrete, pictorial, and abstract means and helps students slow down through the various types of word problems. We begin with part-whole addition problems, move into subtraction, and finally missing addend problems. It helps students turn the corner in their early childhood experience to prepare them for what word problems will start to look like as they get older.

Setting the Stage

In the corner of each journal page is an image that will relate to the story problem. This helps students hold a concrete image in their head as they work with all the other abstract things (writing and number sentences) on the journal page that might not be as familiar to them. Additionally, we are still building oral language, so if students aren’t as familiar with one of the objects, they can use the story they’re reading to help them picture what might be happening. 

Read the Problem

Begin by reading the problem out loud – all of it, without stopping. After this, most students will want to jump right in and fill in the number bond, or start acting it out with concrete objects. They’ll grab the two numbers in the problem and, because we’re adding this week, they’ll add them. Or subtract them, or whatever we’re working on. However, we don’t want kids to look at story problems as things to be dissected –  “circle the numbers” and “underline the important words,” etc. because that really in the end isn’t always going to work for students at this age.

We really want them to slow down and engage with the problem using something called chunking. Chunking has students put a line or highlight or underline a section in the story problem that is bringing in some new information. Even though kindergarten students might not be able to read the word problem themselves, we do want them to get into the habit of “reading” the problem, interacting with the words in the story, and repeating back different parts of the problem. It slows them down enough to really comprehend and visualize what the problem is asking, just like we do in reading. The same process we use for reading a book and trying to understand the author’s message holds true for reading story problems. 

Let’s take this problem:

We could chunk our example by saying, “John made a paperclip chain.” And then the students repeat that back. Now you say chunk because there’s a new piece of information within that story problem that we just read. The next part says he put on five paper clips. chunk The kids repeat that section back. He added on three more paper clips chunk . How long is John’s paper clip chain now? chunk  

The hard part about doing story problems in a slow, methodical, repetitive way, even though we know it helps build kids’ skills, is that students really want a quick and easy way to solve the problem. Spending a lot of time really looking at that story problem and getting that frame of reference using our template will be really helpful to our littles in kindergarten. 

Sentence Form

The second step in our step-by-step visual model process is to create a sentence form. In the kindergarten journal, we provide the sentence form since we felt that putting the question and a complete answer might be a little bit too difficult for some

In Kindergarten, it’s really important to make a note of this sentence form because, as students get into 1st grade, they’re going to start to do more closed sentences with more blanks that require students to supply names and other information. By the time a child gets to 2nd grade, they should be able to read a story problem and be able to repeat back in a complete sentence exactly the way the problem is asking. 

Some people ask why we would bother putting the sentence form in a Kindergarten journal. It all goes back to wanting to really slow the students down and keep them from jumping right into numbers and operations. Having students work with the sentence form encourages good decoding and reading skills as well, and guides students in their understanding of what the problem is asking. Also, I’ve seen many students solve story problems, but then forget to write in the sentence form, so a sentence form is a really great way to help train students’ brains so that when we get that final answer, it is going into the blank, which will complete the thought. 

Math Mat & Quick Draw

Whether you use our horizontal or vertical math work mat, maybe a dry erase board or a purple piece of construction paper, this step is all about concrete tools. The student can go to the Math Salad Bar and choose manipulatives they can use to act out our story problem. They might get five of something, then show three and then count them all together to show how many paper clips John had.

Eventually, students will work more in the Quick Draw Box. We’ve made this section a little bit smaller in this journal because we want students to truly make it a “quick” draw using Xs or dots or something else small to represent the quantities in the problem. In our case, the students might do five large Xs, three small Xs, and then count them all together. ’ 

Number Bond

We’ve given lots of thought to each part of the journal page so far, and this algorithm should be no exception. It would be easy to just grab the numbers out of the problem and plug them into the slots and call it good. But let’s start with that first box. In our word problem, we started with the 5 large paper clips and now we need to change that number in some way, whether we add or subtract. In our example, I’m going to be counting up the chain, so I know we need to put a plus sign in the circle. I write the 3 in the other square, because I’m changing the original number by that many. The equal sign is in another box to the right, and finally there is a place to write the total.

Every journal page takes students through this entire process, so by the end of 75 days, it should be ingrained in their brains! This will help our Kindergarten littles as they head into 1st grade, where they’ll continue to build on higher levels of understanding. 

Types of Problems

We have three different videos to help you to see the different types of problems that can be solved. We also use a coding system on all of our journals to help teachers understand the different types of problems that we’re using. For this journal, we have PWA (Part-Whole Addition), PWS (Part-Whole Subtraction), and PWMA (Part-Whole Missing Addend).

[yotuwp type=”playlist” id=”PL76vNL0J-a4037qQHz2DIrIBKdJs-oPYd” ]

Download the PWA Example

Download the PWS Example

Download the PWMA Example

Why do we code problems for students this young? To a parent or teacher, or even a student, It might feel like there are endless types of story problems. But in fact, we actually have families of story problems, like we have genres of books. Coding the story problems compartmentalizes these different types of story problems. If we are very clear on the type of story problems, we can help students understand the characteristics of the types of problems they will encounter so that problem solving isn’t so scary.

Part-whole problems are the first genre of story problems, and K-1 graders spend a large majority of time working in this group. However, there are lots of different types of part-whole problems – part-whole addition, part-whole subtraction, part-whole missing addend, etc. The next family of problems are the additive-comparison problems, which students will get to later in 1st grade.

In the bottom right-hand corner of each page, there is a number, up through 75. You can download the PDF, print it (or have it printed), and staple it together to make a journal for an individual student. They write their name on the front and it becomes something they work on every day, four or five days a week. Of course, we still do our number talks in the classroom, but this way we make sure we’re bringing our numbers into words and words into numbers on a daily basis as well. 

It’s a really important skill for a child to be able to construct a story problem based on an algorithm or even a missing addend. Let’s take:  4 + ? = 7  If I gave a student that problem, could they think of a story that goes with that? Maybe there were 7 sheep on the farm, but only 4 of them were in the barn. How many were outside? This type of thinking really works on Math Practice 2, which is to which is reason abstractly and quantitatively, to help bring numbers and words together. 

Join us next week to find out what problem solving should be looking at with a child after the Kindergarten year. We’ll be working on taking our quick draw into a proportional visual model, and then into a non-proportional visual model.

*Addition , *Subtraction , *Word Problems , Audience - Lower Elementary (K-2) , Series - Math4Littles | 0 comments

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Subtraction word problems

Kindergarten worksheets: subtraction word problems.

These subtraction word problems are solved with single digit subtraction. The emphasis is on reading the problem, drawing objects and counting and subtracting . 

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10 kindergarten problem solving skills for your little champ.

Want to Improve Your Child's Problem Solving Skills?

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One fine day, I was making my 5 year old memorize his dad’s number – you know, just in case of an emergency! After spending roughly half an hour on the exercise, I decided to test what his little mind had grasped.

“Ok honey, if mommy suddenly falls sick and can’t get out of bed, what are you going to do?”

He didn’t even bat an eyelid before replying, “I’ll eat all the choco-chip cookies I can find in the kitchen.”

To his credit, he did come up with a creative answer to the question… just that it wasn’t exactly the kind of problem solving skill I was hoping for him to acquire!

Trying to bury this particular episode in some remote corner of my brain, I once again bravely attempted to improve my creative child’s problem solving skills – this time around, with desired results (thankfully!).

So here are the 10 kindergarten problem solving skills for kids that helped my little one get smarter while keeping him thoroughly entertained too, an impressive feat to achieve!

1. Puzzle Time

My kindergartener loves to click pictures on my phone, so if anyone happens to open my gallery, they’d know how much I adore my pet dog and my son’s Mickey Mouse pyjamas and his storybooks and the ceiling of my room and of course, the darned choco-chip cookies!

Anyway, if your little one is a budding photographer too, just get a few of his works printed, paste the pictures on a cardboard and cut them carefully to form puzzles for him to solve.

2. What’s in the Bag

This activity is all about letting your child explore the sense of touch. Collect a few different-shaped and sized objects like ball, plush toy, book, comb, keys, crayon, spoon etc. and put them all in a bag.

Now let your child touch each object one-by-one and identify what it is. Once she identifies all objects correctly, you can increase the level of difficulty by opting for objects that are slightly similar like different plush animals (same size) or cars of different models.

Mazes are an engaging activity that kids love. Problem-solving with mazes requires your child to concentrate in a fun way and they help hone her motor skills too.

You can find a number of free printable mazes on the Internet according to your child’s age. Alternatively, you can create them at home too.

Pro Tip: Help Your Child Become Better at Problem Solving

Enroll your child for the Atlas Mission and let your child play with this award-winning educational program. Your child will become better at problem solving without even realizing it!

4. Duplicate my Structure

I am sure your kindergartener must be having truckloads of building blocks of every shape and size. Every kindergartener does.

Now it is time for you to get creative and build a model out of those blocks. Remember to spare enough blocks for your child to duplicate the model. Set a time limit for her to finish the task.

Start by building easy models and then move on to difficult ones.

5. Shape Sudoku

Sudoku is an interesting Japanese puzzle where the player is required to fill empty places in a grid with numbers, making sure no number is repeated in a row or column.

Shape Sudoku replaces numbers with shapes, to make it more fun for kindergarteners, and is a great way to improve your little one’s problem solving skills. You can give him a 4*4 grid for starters and then gradually raise the level of difficulty.

There are scores of simple, printable shape Sudoku puzzles  available on the Internet, so just print a few and treat yourself to a relaxing evening while your little monster gets busy wracking his tiny brain.

6. Treasure Hunt

This is an activity my kid absolutely loves, though I believe that’s because he gets his favorite snack in the end! I just tape little notes in different corners of his room, each note giving a clue on where to find the next one, and the last one leading him to his snack.

Not only did treasure hunt help hone my child’s problem solving skills, it also made him learn how to read words like cupboard, flower pot, laptop, pen holder, school bag etc. Good job, mommy (patting my back)!

7. My Name in the Square

Now that’s a game most of us played when we were kindergarteners. I remember I did and was quite good at it too (so that kind of explains why I’m such a problem-solving genius. At least, that’s what my husband believes, bless him!).

So to play this game, make rows of dots, you can start with six dots in six rows. Now take turns with your child drawing one line to connect two dots, either horizontally or vertically. One who completes a box writes their name in it and takes another turn. The one with more names in the boxes wins.

Pro Tip: If you don’t want a wailing child at the end of the evening, let him win a few games too. I know it is hard, but give it a try!

8. Trial and Error Learning

Whenever we buy a new gadget, we usually spend a good deal of time trying to figure out how it works, don’t we? Since I am more technologically challenged than I would care to admit, I sometimes end up spending days understanding the nitty-gritties of my new gadgets.

Now this is exactly what you need to do with your kiddo too. When you’re giving him a new toy/game, don’t tell him right away how it works. Let him struggle a bit and discover things through ‘trial and error’.

As a parent, I know you’ll feel the urge to step in and make things simpler for your munchkin. But I assure you, his joy of solving a new puzzle all by himself, or of figuring out how the controls of his latest car work will be unmatched.

9. ‘What will you do?’ Game

All the above mentioned problem solving skills require your little one to use her brain creatively, which is great, but what about the problems your child might encounter while interacting socially?

This activity involves giving your child a particular situation, framing a set of ‘What will you do?’ questions and then giving her four alternatives for each.

For example: If you fall down in class and your friend starts laughing, what will you do?

• Get up like nothing happened and go back to your seat.
• Ask her to stop as there’s nothing funny about it.
• Start crying.
• Stop talking to her for a while.

To make this activity more interesting and fun, you can draw the four alternatives on a piece of paper and then ask your child to color the one she’d choose. Since I suck at drawing, I got the pictures printed instead.

10. Put my Lid Back

Take a few empty bottles and jars of varying sizes and unscrew their caps/lids. Now ask your child genius to put the correct lid on each one. Again you can use a stopwatch to check how much time he takes to finish the task.

So these 10 kindergarten problem solving skills for kids are sure to give an edge to your little one’s already impressive personality and ensure he keeps himself busy doing something productive too, for a change! And yes, you can thank me later!

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About the Author

Pooja Jain creates educational content for the Atlas Mission . She is a mother of two sweethearts, a travel enthusiast and a self-proclaimed singer. On days she’s not busy running after her little humans, you can find her reading fiction while downing copious amounts of coffee.

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Problem solving is challenging for young students (and many adults too)! To support my little friends, I teach them problem solving strategies that they can use when they encounter a problem. We want our students to become independent thinkers who can solve problems, control their emotions, express empathy, and help others.

I introduce the problem solving techniques a few at a time during a class meeting. Each week, I introduce three new problem solving techniques.  We then end up with nine to twelve techniques total based on what my students need that year.  I explain the technique to the students in concrete terms so they will understand what the technique is and what it can look/sound like.

We usually start with these four skills:  “please stop”, ask, get help, and say how you feel.  Many problems can be solved with those solutions, which is why I always start with those. Then, the following week, I introduce take turns, play together, trade, and share. Then, the last four solutions the next week.

Problem Solving Techniques

Singing with puppets is a fun and active way to practice the problem-solving techniques .  Preschoolers LOVE puppets!  This technique also allows students to role play.  Some students will be more verbal if they can pretend to be someone else.  At the end of each verse, students act out the problem-solving technique with a buddy using the puppets!As a transition activity to lunch, students took turns sharing a way they have solved a problem. You can also play, “What would you do if….”. State a real problem that could happen and have students pick a problem-solving solution to solve the problem. Some examples would be, “What would you do if your friend took your book?”, “What would you do if you got sticky glue on your hands?”, or “What would you do if you needed the red marker and your friend was coloring with it?” Once they have learned the strategies, stand back and let students try solving their own problems independently. Just a warning: this can take some time with lots of practice and support. As long as the student isn’t frustrated, let them try before you jump in to help. You will be amazed at the problems your child can solve given the opportunity to.

At first, you will be giving students lots of support and giving them the words to use to solve a problem.

• Always approach students at their level, in a calm supporting way.
• Ask, “what’s the problem?” If they don’t respond, comment on what you see such as “I see you have glue all over your hands and it looks sticky.”
• Restate the problem. “So the problem is ….”
• Brainstorm solutions and choose one together. This is the perfect time to use problem solving card visuals! “How can we solve this problem?” Flip through the solution cards and ask “Could we ….?”
• Praise and observe! Cheer on the students for solving the problem and stay close just in case they need more support.

Throughout the day, try to make EVERYTHING a problem to solve.  Then model, talk through your thinking out loud, and use visuals to support students as they try to solve a problem. For example, I may put out a big ball of playdough in the center of the table as a small group activity. Students have to problem solve so each student has play dough to play with. It only takes few extra minutes to sneak in problem-solving situations throughout the day. Each time students help solve a problem or observe a friend solve a problem, they learn to self-regulate, express emotions appropriately, develop empathy, and develop problem-solving skills.

State problems for students who look stuck. If a student is just standing there, they need support, but don’t solve the problem for them! It’s so easy to do. Simply state their problem or what you see and ask a probing question. For example, if a student is standing with an empty bowl in their hand, you could say “Your snack spilled on the floor. How can you solve the problem?”

Problem-Solving Necklace or Mini Book!

I hole punched the small cards, put them on a book ring and keep them on a lanyard I wear every day.  This way I can support students’ solving problems without having to go to the safe place where they are posted.  I can just show the picture cards as a visual on my necklace.  The mini book in the safe place works the same way.

Safe Place!

I keep my techniques posted in my circle area at the beginning of the year AND in my safe place. My safe place is a small spot in my classroom where students can go when they are upset, need to calm down, want to be alone, or have a problem.

Once I see students using the problem-solving techniques independently, I remove them from my circle area.  They are posted in my safe place ALL YEAR LONG for students to use when they are struggling to solve a problem.  In my safe place, you will find a mirror, feeling chart, bean bag, sensory bottles, calm down choices, a stuffed animal, problem solving mini book and problem-solving techniques chart. You can read all about how to set up a safe place in your classroom HERE . Children’s Books!

These are some of my FAVORITE children’s books to teach all about problem-solving.  As we read the book, we talk about how the character is or isn’t solving the problem, how it makes the character and others feel, any natural consequences that could occur, and which one of our problem-solving strategies the character could use to solve the problem.

Do you want to use them in your classroom?  You can!  I did the work for you.  Grab them from my TPT store HERE .

LOVE it? Pin this image!

hey, i’m jackie!

I’m Jackie, your go-to girl for early childhood inspiration and research-based curriculum. 

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The Opening Days of Trump’s First Criminal Trial

Here’s what has happened so far in the unprecedented proceedings against a former u.s. president..

This transcript was created using speech recognition software. While it has been reviewed by human transcribers, it may contain errors. Please review the episode audio before quoting from this transcript and email [email protected] with any questions.

It’s the first day of the Trump trial and just walking out the door in my house. It’s a beautiful day, 6:11 AM. The thing that keeps running through my head is it’s kind of amazing that hundreds of jurors are going to show up at the Manhattan courthouse. And some of them are going to know what they’re there for — probably talking to their friends, their relatives about it.

Some of them are going to learn this morning talking to other jurors in line, asking what all the fuss is about. But I really do imagine that there’s going to be at least one potential juror who, headphones on, getting into court. Here they’re going to be there for the first criminal trial of Donald J. Trump. And just, I mean, how would you react?

[MUSIC PLAYING]

From “The New York Times,” I’m Michael Barbaro. This is “The Daily.” Today, what it’s been like inside the lower Manhattan courtroom, where political and legal history are being made? My colleague, Jonah Bromwich, on the opening days of the first criminal trial of a US President. It’s Thursday, April 18.

Is that his mic? Hi, there.

Hello. How are you?

I’m doing good.

OK. Thank you for coming in, Jonah —

Thank you for having me.

— in the middle of a trial. Can you just explain why you’re able to even be here?

Sure. So we happen to be off on Wednesdays during trial, so.

We being not “The New York Times,” but the courts.

That’s right.

Which is why we’re taping with you. And because we now have two full court days of this history-making trial now under our belts. And the thing about this trial that’s so interesting is that there are no cameras in the courtroom for the wider world.

There’s no audio recordings. So all we really have is and your eyes and your notebook, maybe your laptop. And so we’re hoping you can reconstruct for us the scene of the first two days of this trial and really the highlights.

Yeah, I’d be happy to. So on Monday morning, I left the subway. It’s before 7:00 AM. The sun is just rising over these grandiose court buildings in lower Manhattan.

I’m about to turn left onto Center Street. I’m right in front of the big municipal building.

And I turn onto Center Street. That’s where the courthouses are.

I’m crossing.

And I expected to see a big crowd. And it was even bigger than I had anticipated.

Here we go. Here we go. Here we go. Now, I finally see the crowd.

You have camera banks. You have reporters. You have the beginnings of what will eventually become a protest. And you have this most New York thing, which is just a big crowd of people.

[CHUCKLES]: Who just know something is going on.

That’s right. And what they know is going on is, of course, the first trial of an American president.

All right, I’m passing the camera, folks. Camera, camera, camera, camera. Here we go.

Let’s start with Sharon Crowley live outside the courthouse in Lower Manhattan.

I want to get right to ABC’S Aaron Katersky who’s outside of the courthouse.

Robert Costa is following it outside the courthouse in Lower Manhattan. Bob, I saw the satellite trucks lined up all in a row. Good morning.

Talk to us how we got here exactly.

So this is the case that was brought by the Manhattan district attorney. So prosecutors have accused Donald Trump of covering up the actions of his former fixer, Michael Cohen, after Cohen paid hush money to Stormy Daniels. Stormy Daniels had a story about having had sex with Donald Trump, which Trump has always denied.

Cohen paid her money, and then Trump reimbursed Cohen. And prosecutors say that Trump essentially defrauded the American people because he hid this information that could have been very important for the election from those people when he reimbursed Cohen.

Right. And as I remember it, he also misrepresented what that reimbursement was. Claimed it was a legal fee when, in fact, it was just reimbursing Michael Cohen for a hush money payment.

Exactly, yeah. He definitely didn’t say reimbursement for hush money payment to Stormy Daniels. It’s a cover up case. It’s a case about hiding information you don’t want people to see.

Right. And of course, the context of all this is that it is in the middle of a presidential election. It’s 2016. Trump wants to keep this secret, prosecutors allege, so that the American public doesn’t know about it and potentially hold it against him.

Right. And prosecutors are telling a story about election interference. They’re saying that Trump interfered with an election. And Trump himself is also using the phrase “election interference.” But he’s painting the trial itself as election interference as he now runs again in 2024.

Fascinating.

And because we’re in Manhattan, and because the jury pool is going to be largely Democratic, and the judge is a Democrat, and the district attorney is a Democrat, Trump keeps claiming he cannot get a fair shake. This is democrat central. And in democrat central, Trump doesn’t have a chance.

OK. So, what happens once you actually enter the courthouse?

Outside, there’s all this fanfare. But inside, it’s a little bit business as usual. So I go up to the 15th floor, and I walk into the courtroom, and I sit down, and it’s the same old courtroom. And we’re sitting and waiting for the former president.

Around 9:30, Trump walks in. He looks thin. He looks a little tired, kind of slumping forward, as if to say with his body like let’s get this over with. Here we go.

The judge walks in a little bit after that. And we think we’re all set for the trial to start, but that’s not what happens here. And in fact, there are a series of legal arguments about what the trial is going to look like and what evidence is going to be allowed in.

So, for example, prosecutors ask that they be allowed to admit into evidence headlines from “The National Enquirer” that were attacks on Trump’s 2016 opponents — on Ted Cruz, on Marco Rubio, on Ben Carson.

Because prosecutors are in some sense putting Trump’s 2016 campaign on trial. These headlines are a big part of that because what prosecutors say they show is that Trump had this ongoing deal with “The National Enquirer.” And the publisher would promote him, and it would publish damaging stories about his opponents. And then crucially, it would protect Trump from negative stories. And that’s exactly what prosecutors say happened with Stormy Daniels. That “The National Enquirer” tipped Cohen off about Stormy Daniels trying to sell her story of having had sex with Donald Trump, which he denies. And that led to the hush money payment to her. So what prosecutors are doing overall with these headlines is establishing a pattern of conduct. And that conduct, they say, was an attempt to influence the election in Trump’s favor.

And the judge agrees. He’s going to admit this evidence. And this is a pretty big win for the prosecution. But even though they win that one, they’re not winning everything.

They lose some important arguments here. One of them was that after the Access Hollywood tape came out, there were allegations of sexual assault against Donald Trump. And you know this, Michael, because you reported two of them — two of the three in question at this very trial.

Prosecutors had hoped to talk about those during trial in front of the jury to show the jurors that the Trump campaign was really, really focused on pushing back against bad press in the wake of the Access Hollywood tape in which Trump seemed to describe sexual assault. That was a big problem for the campaign. Campaign did everything it could to push back, including against these allegations that surfaced in the wake of the tape.

But the judge, saying that the allegations are hearsay — that they’re based on the women’s stories — says absolutely not. That is incredibly prejudicial to the defendant.

Interesting.

And that Donald Trump would actually not get a fair trial were those allegations to be mentioned. And so he will not let those in. The jurors will not hear about them.

So this is a setback, of course, for the prosecution, a victory for Trump’s legal team.

It’s a setback. And it also just shows you how these pre-trial motions shape the context of the trial. Think of the trial as a venue like a theater or an athletic contest of some sort. And these pre-trial motions are about what gets led into the arena and what stays out. The sexual assault allegations — out. “The National Enquirer” headlines — in.

OK. And how is Trump sitting there at the defense table reacting to these pre-trial motion rulings from the judge?

Well, as I’ve just said, this is very important stuff for his trial.

Right. Hugely important.

But it’s all happening in legal language, and I’m decoding it for you. But if you were sitting there listening to it, you might get a little lost, and you might get a little bored. And Trump, who is not involved in these arguments, seems to fall asleep.

Seems to fall asleep — you’re seeing this with your own eyes.

What we’re seeing, overall, including our colleague, Maggie Haberman, who’s in the overflow room and has a direct view of Trump’s face — I’m sitting behind him in the courtroom, so I can’t see his face that well.

You guys are double teaming this.

That’s right. I’m sitting behind him, but Maggie is sitting in front of him. And what she sees is not only that his eyes are closed. That wouldn’t get you to he is asleep.

And we have to be really careful about reporting that he’s asleep, even if it seems like a frivolous thing. But what happens is that his head is dropping down to his chest, and then it’s snapping back up. So you’ve seen that, when a student —

I’ve done that.

(CHUCKLES) Yeah. We all kind of know that feeling of snapping awake suddenly. And we see the head motion, and it happens several times.

Lawyers kind of bothering him, not quite shaking him, but certainly trying to get his attention. And that head snapping motion, we felt confident enough to report that Trump fell asleep.

During his own criminal trial’s opening day.

Does someone eventually wake him up?

He wakes up. He wakes up. And in fact, in the afternoon, he’s much more animated. It’s almost as if he wants to be seen being very much awake.

Right. So once these pre-trial motions are ruled on and Trump is snapped back to attention, what happens?

Well, what happens in the courtroom is that the trial begins. The first trial of an American president is now in session. And what marks that beginning is jurors walking into the room one by one — many of them kind of craning their necks over at Donald Trump, giggling, raising their eyebrows at each other, filing into the room, and being sworn in by the judge. And that swearing in marks the official beginning of the trial.

The beginning is jury selection, and it’s often overlooked. It’s not dramatized in our kind of courtroom dramas in the same way. But it’s so important. It’s one of the most important parts of the case. Because whoever sits on the jury, these are the 12 people who are going to decide whether Trump is guilty or whether Trump is innocent.

So how does jury selection actually look and feel and go?

So, jury selection is a winnowing process. And in order to do that, you have to have these people go through a bunch of different hurdles. So the first hurdle is, after the judge describes the case, he asks the group — and there are just short of 100 of them — whether they can be fair and impartial. And says that if they can’t, they should leave. And more than half the group is instantly gone.

So after we do this big mass excusal, we’re left with the smaller group. And so now, jurors are getting called in smaller groups to the jury box. And what they’re going to do there is they’re going to answer this questionnaire.

And this part of the process is really conducted by the judge. The lawyers are involved. They’re listening, but they’re not yet asking questions of the jurors themselves.

And what’s on the questionnaire?

Well, it’s 42 questions. And the questions include, their education, their professional histories, their hobbies, what they like to do whether you’re a member of QAnon or Antifa.

Whether you’re far left or far right.

That’s right. Whether you’ve read “The Art of the Deal,” Trump’s book, which some prospective jurors had.

Right. It was a bestseller in its time.

That’s right. And some of it can be answered in yes/no questions, but some of it can be answered more at length. So some of the prospective jurors are going very, very fast. Yes, no, no, no, yes.

Right. Because this is an oral questionnaire.

That’s right. But some of them are taking their time. They’re expanding on their hobbies. So the potential juror in seat 3, for example, is talking about her hobbies. And she says some running, hiking. And then she said, I like to go to the club, and it got a huge laugh. And you get that kind of thing in jury selection, which is one of the reasons it’s so fun. It’s the height of normality in this situation that is anything but normal.

Right. The most banal answer possible delivered in front of the former president And current Republican nominee for president.

Well, that’s one of the fascinating parts about all this, right? is that they’re answering in front of Trump. And they’re answering questions about Trump in front of Trump. He doesn’t react all that much. But whenever someone says they’ve read “The Art of the Deal —” and there are a few of those — he kind of nods appreciatively, smiles. He likes that. It’s very clear. But because there are so many questions, this is taking forever, especially when people are choosing to answer and elaborate and digress.

This is when you fall asleep.

This Is. When I would have fallen asleep if I were a normal person.

And by the end of the day. Where does jury selection stand?

Well, the questionnaire is another device for shrinking that jury pool. And so the questionnaire has almost these little obstacles or roadblocks, including, in fact, a question that jurors have seen before — whether they would have any problem being fair and impartial?

Hmm. And they ask it again.

They’re asked it again. And they’re asked in this more individualized way. The judge is questioning them. They’re responding.

So, remember that woman who said she liked to go to the club got a big laugh. She reaches question 34. And question 34 reads, “Do you have any strong opinions or firmly-held beliefs about former President Donald Trump or the fact that he is a current candidate for president that would interfere with your ability to be a fair and impartial juror?” She said, yes, she does have an opinion that would prevent her from being fair and impartial. And she, too, is excused.

So that’s how it works. People answer the questionnaire, and they get excused in that way, or they have a scheduling conflict once they reach the jury box. And so to answer your question, Michael. At the end of day one, given all these problems with the questionnaire and the length of time it’s taken to respond to and people getting dismissed based on their answers, there is not a single juror seated for this trial.

And it’s starting to look like this is going to be a really hard case for which to find an impartial jury.

That’s the feeling in the room, yeah.

We’ll be right back.

So Jonah, let’s turn to day 2. What does jury selection look like on Tuesday?

So when the day begins, it looks almost exactly like it looked when the day ended on Monday. We’re still with the questionnaire, getting some interesting answers. But even though it feels like we’re going slow, we are going.

And so we’ve gone from about 100 people to now there’s about 24 the room there’s 18 the jury box. And by the time we hit lunch, all those people have answered all those questions, and we are ready for the next step in the process.

Voir dire. And what it is the heart of jury selection. This is the point where the lawyers themselves finally get to interview the jurors. And we get so much information from this moment because the lawyers ask questions based on what they want out of the jurors.

So the prosecution is asking all these different kinds of questions. The first round of wajir is done by a guy named Joshua Steinglass, a very experienced trial lawyer with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. And he’s providing all these hypotheticals. I’ll give you one example because I found this one really, really interesting. He provides a hypothetical about a man who wants his wife killed and essentially hires a hitman to do it. And what he asked the jurors is, if that case were before you, would you be able to see that the man who hired the hitman was a part of this crime?

And of course, what he’s really getting at is, can you accept that even though Michael Cohen, Trump’s fixer, made this payment, Trump is the guy who hired him to do it?

That’s right. If there are other people involved, will jurors still be able to see Donald Trump’s hands behind it all?

Fascinating. And what were some of the responses?

People mostly said, yes, we accept that. So that’s how the prosecution did it.

But the defense had a totally different method of voir dire. They were very focused on their client and people’s opinions about their client.

So what kind of questions do we get from them?

So the lawyer, Todd Blanche, is asking people, what do you make of President Trump? What do you think of President Trump?

And what are some of the responses to that?

Well, there’s this incredible exchange with one of the jurors who absolutely refuses to give his opinion of Donald Trump. They go back and forth and back and forth. And the juror keeps insisting you don’t need to know my opinion of him. All you need to know is that I’m going to be fair and impartial, like I said. And Blanch pushes, and the guy pushes back. And the only way the guy budges is he finally kind of confesses almost at the end that, yes, I am a Democrat, and that’s all we get.

And what ends up happening to this potential juror?

Believe it or not, he got dismissed.

[LAUGHS]: I can believe it. And of course, it’s worth saying that this guy and everybody else is being asked that question just feet from Trump himself.

That’s right. And you might think you were going to get a really kind of spicy, like, popcorn emoji-type exchange from that. But because these are now jurors who have said they can be fair and impartial, who, to some extent, want to be on this jury or at least wouldn’t mind being on this jury, they’re being very restrained.

Mostly, what they are emphasizing — much like that guy just described dis — is that they can be fair. They can be impartial. There’s one woman who gives this really remarkable answer.

She says, I thought about this last night. I stayed up all night. I couldn’t sleep, thinking about whether I could be fair. It’s really important to me, and I can.

What ends up happening to that particular juror?

She’s also dismissed. And she’s dismissed without any reason at all. The defense decides it doesn’t like her. It doesn’t want her on the jury. And they have a certain number of chances to just get rid of jurors — no questions asked.

Other jurors are getting dismissed for cause — I’m doing air quotes with my hands — which means that the lawyers have argued they actually revealed themselves through their answers or through old social media posts, which are brought up in the courtroom, to be either non-credible, meaning they’ve said they can be fair and they can’t, or somehow too biased to be on the jury.

Wait, can I just dial into that for a second? Are lawyers researching the jurors in real time going online and saying — I’m making this up — but Jonah Bromwich is a potential juror, and I’m going to go off into my little corner of the courtroom and Google everything you’ve ever said? Is that what’s happening in the room?

Yeah, there’s a whole profession dedicated to that. It’s called jury consultant, and they’re very good at finding information on people in a hurry. And it certainly looked as if they were in play.

Did a social media post end up getting anybody kicked off this jury?

Yes, there were posts from 2016 era internet. You’ll remember that time as a very heated one on the internet, Facebook memes are a big thing. And so there’s all kinds of lock him up type memes and rhetoric. And some of the potential jurors here have used those. And those jurors are dismissed for a reason.

So we have these two types of dismissals, right? We have these peremptory dismissals — no reason at all given. And we have for cause dismissals.

And the process is called jury selection. But you don’t actually get selected for a jury. The thing is to make it through all these obstacles.

You’re left over.

Right. And so when certain jurors are not dismissed, and they’ve made it through all these stages, by the end of the day, we have gone from zero juror seated to seven jurors who will be participating in Donald Trump’s trial.

Got it. And without going through all seven, just give us a little bit of a sketch of who so far is on this jury. What stands out?

Well, not that much stands out. So we’ve got four men. We’ve got three women. One lives on the Upper East Side. One lives in Chelsea. Obviously, they’re from all over Manhattan.

They have these kind of very normal hobbies like spending time with family and friends. They have somewhat anonymous jobs. We’ve got two lawyers. We’ve got someone who’s worked in sales.

So there’s not that much identifying information. And that’s not an accident . One of the things that often happens with jury selection, whether it be for Donald Trump or for anyone else, is the most interesting jurors — the jurors that kind of catch your attention during the process — they get picked off because they are being so interesting that they interest one or the other side in a negative way. And soon they’re excused. So most of the jurors who are actually seated —

Are not memorable.

Are not that memorable, save one particular juror.

OK. All right, I’ll bite. What do I need to know about that one particular juror?

So let me tell you about a prospective juror who we knew as 374, who will now be juror number five. She’s a middle school teacher from Harlem. And she said that she has friends who have really strong opinions about Trump, but she herself does not. And she insisted several times, I am not a political person.

And then she said this thing that made me quite surprised that the prosecution was fine with having her on the jury. She said, quote, “President Trump speaks his mind, and I’d rather that than someone who’s in office who you don’t know what they’re thinking.”

Hmm. So she expressed approval of President Trump.

Yeah, it was mild approval. But the thing is, especially for the defense in this trial, all you need is one juror. One juror can tie up deliberations in knots, and you can end with a hung jury. And this is actually something that I saw firsthand. In 2019, I was the foreperson on a jury.

How you like that?

Yeah. And the trial was really complicated, but I had thought while we were doing the trial, oh, this is going to be a really easy decision. I thought the defendant in that case was guilty. So we get into deliberations, but there’s this one juror who keeps gumming up the works every time we seem to be making progress, getting a conversation started.

This juror proverbially throws up his hands and says, I am not convicting. This man is innocent. And we talked and we talked. And as the foreperson, I was trying to use all my skills to mediate.

But any time we made any progress, this guy would blow it up. And long story short, hung jury — big victory for the defense lawyer. And we come out of the room. And she points at this juror. The guy —

The defense lawyer.

The defense lawyer points at this juror who blew everything up. And she said, I knew it. I knew I had my guy.

OK. I don’t want to read too much into what you said about that one juror. But should I read between the lines to think that if there’s a hung jury, you wonder if it might be that juror?

That’s what everyone in the courtroom is wondering not just about this juror, but about every single person who was selected. Is this the person who swings the case for me? Is this the person who swings the case against me?

These juries are so complex. It’s 12 people who don’t know each other at the start of the trial and, by the end of the trial, have seen each other every morning and are experiencing the same things, but are not allowed to have talked about the case until deliberations start. In that moment when deliberations start —

You’re going to learn a whole lot about each other.

That’s right. There’s this alchemical moment where suddenly, it all matters. Every personality selected matters. And that’s why jury selection is so important. And that’s why these last two days are actually one of the most important parts of this trial.

OK. So by my math, this trial will require five more jurors to get to 12. I know also they’re going to need to be alternates. But from what you’re saying what looked like a really uphill battle to get an impartial jury or a jury that said it could be impartial — and Trump was very doubtful one could be found — has turned out to not be so hard to find.

That’s right. And in fact, we went from thinking, oh, boy, this is going awfully slowly, to the judge himself saying we could be doing opening arguments as soon as Monday morning. And I think that highlights something that’s really fascinating both about this trial and about the jury selection process overall.

One of the things that lawyers have been arguing about is whether or not it’s important to figure out what jurors’ opinions about Donald Trump are. And the prosecution and, I think, the judge have really said, no, that’s not the key issue here. The key issue is not whether or not people have opinions about Donald Trump.

Right. Who doesn’t have an opinion about Donald Trump?

Exactly. They’re going to. Automatically, they’re going to. The question is whether or not they can be fair and impartial. And the seven people we already have seated, and presumably the five people that we’re going to get over the next few days and however many alternates — we expect six — are all going to have answered that question, not I hate Trump; I love Trump, but I can weigh in on the former president’s innocence or guilt, and I can do it as fairly as humanly possible.

Now, Trump is not happy about this. He said after court yesterday, quote, We have a highly conflicted judge, and he’s rushing this trial.” And I think that he is going to see these beats of the system the criminal justice system as it works on him as he is experiencing it as unfair. That is typically how he talks about it and how he views it.

But what he’s getting is what defendants get. This is the system in New York, in the United States. This is its answer to how do you pick a fair jury? Well, you ask people can you be fair? And you put them through this process, and the outcome is 12 people.

And so I think we’re going to see this over and over again in this trial. We’re going to see Trump experience the criminal justice system.

And its routines.

Yeah, openings, witnesses, evidence, closings. He’s going to go through all of it. And I think, at every turn, it makes sense to expect him to say, well, this is not fair. Well, the judge is doing something wrong. Well, the prosecutors are doing something wrong. Well, the jury is doing something wrong.

But at the end of the day, he’s going to be a defendant, and he’s going to sit, mostly silently if his lawyers can make him do that, and watch this process play itself out. So the system is going to try and treat him like any other defendant, even though, of course —

— he’s not. And he is going to fight back like no other defendant would, like no other defendant could. And that tension, him pushing against the criminal justice system as it strives to treat him, as it would anyone else, is going to be a defining quality of this trial.

Well, Jonah, thank you very much. We appreciate it.

Of course. Thanks so much for having me. [MUSIC PLAYING]

PS, have you ever fallen asleep in a trial?

I have not.

[CHUCKLES]:

Here’s what else you need to know today.

It’s clear the Israelis are making a decision to act. We hope they do so in a way that does as little to escalate this as possible and in a way that, as I said —

During a visit to Jerusalem on Wednesday, Britain’s foreign Secretary left little doubt that Israel would retaliate against Iran for last weekend’s aerial attack, despite pressure from the United States and Britain to stand down. The question now is what form that retaliation will take? “The Times” reports that Israel is weighing several options, including a direct strike on Iran, a cyber attack, or targeted assassinations. And —

Look, history judges us for what we do. This is a critical time right now, critical time on the world stage.

In a plan that could threaten his job, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson will put a series of foreign aid bills up for a vote this weekend. The bills, especially for aid to Ukraine, are strongly opposed by far-right House Republicans, at least two of whom have threatened to try to oust Johnson over the plan.

I can make a selfish decision and do something that’s different, but I’m doing here what I believe to be the right thing. I think providing lethal aid to Ukraine right now is critically important. I really do. I really — [MUSIC PLAYING]

Today’s episode was produced by Rikki Novetsky, Will Reid, Lynsea Garrison, and Rob Zubko. It was edited by Paige Cowett, contains original music by Marion Lozano, Elisheba Ittoop, and Dan Powell, and was engineered by Chris Wood. Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly Lake.

That’s it for “The Daily.” I’m Michael Barbaro. See you tomorrow.

• April 19, 2024   •   30:42 The Supreme Court Takes Up Homelessness
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• April 16, 2024   •   29:29 A.I.’s Original Sin
• April 15, 2024   •   24:07 Iran’s Unprecedented Attack on Israel
• April 14, 2024   •   46:17 The Sunday Read: ‘What I Saw Working at The National Enquirer During Donald Trump’s Rise’
• April 12, 2024   •   34:23 How One Family Lost $900,000 in a Timeshare Scam
• April 11, 2024   •   28:39 The Staggering Success of Trump’s Trial Delay Tactics
• April 10, 2024   •   22:49 Trump’s Abortion Dilemma
• April 9, 2024   •   30:48 How Tesla Planted the Seeds for Its Own Potential Downfall
• April 8, 2024   •   30:28 The Eclipse Chaser
• April 7, 2024 The Sunday Read: ‘What Deathbed Visions Teach Us About Living’

Hosted by Michael Barbaro

Featuring Jonah E. Bromwich

Produced by Rikki Novetsky ,  Will Reid ,  Lynsea Garrison and Rob Szypko

Edited by Paige Cowett

Original music by Dan Powell ,  Marion Lozano and Elisheba Ittoop

Engineered by Chris Wood

Listen and follow The Daily Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music

Political and legal history are being made in a Lower Manhattan courtroom as Donald J. Trump becomes the first former U.S. president to undergo a criminal trial.

Jonah Bromwich, who covers criminal justice in New York, explains what happened during the opening days of the trial, which is tied to Mr. Trump’s role in a hush-money payment to a porn star.

On today’s episode

Jonah E. Bromwich , who covers criminal justice in New York for The New York Times.

Background reading

Here’s a recap of the courtroom proceedings so far.

Mr. Trump’s trial enters its third day with seven jurors chosen.

There are a lot of ways to listen to The Daily. Here’s how.

We aim to make transcripts available the next workday after an episode’s publication. You can find them at the top of the page.

The Daily is made by Rachel Quester, Lynsea Garrison, Clare Toeniskoetter, Paige Cowett, Michael Simon Johnson, Brad Fisher, Chris Wood, Jessica Cheung, Stella Tan, Alexandra Leigh Young, Lisa Chow, Eric Krupke, Marc Georges, Luke Vander Ploeg, M.J. Davis Lin, Dan Powell, Sydney Harper, Mike Benoist, Liz O. Baylen, Asthaa Chaturvedi, Rachelle Bonja, Diana Nguyen, Marion Lozano, Corey Schreppel, Rob Szypko, Elisheba Ittoop, Mooj Zadie, Patricia Willens, Rowan Niemisto, Jody Becker, Rikki Novetsky, John Ketchum, Nina Feldman, Will Reid, Carlos Prieto, Ben Calhoun, Susan Lee, Lexie Diao, Mary Wilson, Alex Stern, Dan Farrell, Sophia Lanman, Shannon Lin, Diane Wong, Devon Taylor, Alyssa Moxley, Summer Thomad, Olivia Natt, Daniel Ramirez and Brendan Klinkenberg.

Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Sam Dolnick, Paula Szuchman, Lisa Tobin, Larissa Anderson, Julia Simon, Sofia Milan, Mahima Chablani, Elizabeth Davis-Moorer, Jeffrey Miranda, Renan Borelli, Maddy Masiello, Isabella Anderson and Nina Lassam.

Jonah E. Bromwich covers criminal justice in New York, with a focus on the Manhattan district attorney’s office and state criminal courts in Manhattan. More about Jonah E. Bromwich

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