1st grade children add and subtract Proficient in the 100 range and want to try "a little more difficult" problems? The practice questions below are prepared in the spirit of mental math exams like TIMO: no need for knowledge beyond the grade level, but need to read carefully, reason and know how to count without missing any mistakes.

All 15 questions are tests prepared by the Karotto team according to 5 familiar areas of format. This exam: logic, arithmetic, number theory, geometry and combinatorics. This is not an official exam, and Karotto is not affiliated with the TIMO organizing committee. If parents are not sure what this exam is, please read the article What is TIMO? What do parents need to know before letting their children take the test?.

All answers in the test have been rechecked by computer (trying all cases, with counting pictures, counting on the coordinates of each line segment), so parents can rest assured to use it to correct their children's problems.

How to use this practice question

The test has 15 questions, number range up to 100. In each array, the previous sentence is easier than the next sentence. Parents can use the question paper in three steps:

Timer: print the question paper or copy it on paper, and let your child do it in about 40 minutes (Karotto's suggestion, about 3 minutes per question). Just write down the answer, don't open the solution yet. If the child is not yet able to read fluently, parents should read the questions for help.
Follow in arrays: If your child is new or gets tired easily, divide the problem into several short sessions, each session having one or two sections (3 to 6 sentences). Complete one area and then move on to another, letting your child focus on one type of thinking.
Correction: For each sentence, let your child retell how to do it first, then open "See solution". If the question is wrong, find the correct step that the child misunderstood, write it down, and let the child do it again the next day.

Tips for parents: don't judge just by the answer. A correct sentence thanks to a guess is not as rewarding as an incorrect sentence in which the child explains what he thinks. The solution below is written so that parents can read it once and explain it in their own words.

Part 1: Logic (sentences 1 to 3)

Verse 1

Three friends An, Binh and Chi compare their heights. An is taller than Binh. Chi is lower than Binh. Ask which person is the shortest?

See solution

Answer: Chi.

Arrange the three people from highest to lowest according to each question:

  1. "An is taller than Binh": An stands in front of Binh. We have: An, Binh.
  2. "Chi is lower than Binh": Chi is behind Binh. We have: An, Binh, Chi.

The person standing at the end of the row is the shortest: Chi.

Teaching tip: let the child draw three sticks of different lengths and write the name on each stick. Children will see the picture immediately, no need to remember it in their head.

Verse 2

There are 9 people lined up in a horizontal row. Mai is 4th from the left. Ask What is Mai's position from the right?

See solution

Answer: 6th.

  1. Mai is 4th from the left, so Mai has 3 friends on her left.
  2. Ignore the 3 people on the left and Mai herself, the number of friends on the right Mai is: 9 − 3 − 1 = 5 people.
  3. Count from the right, after those 5 people get to Mai, so Mai stands 6th.

Common mistake: take 9 − 4 = 5. This subtraction shows the number of people standing to the right of Mai, not counting Mai herself. Parents can arrange 9 toys in a row for the baby to try counting in two directions.

Question 3

Three friends, Ti, Teo, and Tun, each raise a different animal: cat, dog, fish. Ti does not raise cats and does not raise fish. Teo does not raise cats. Ask What animal does Tú raise?

See solution

Answer: A cat.

  1. Ti doesn't raise cats or fish, so he raises dogs.
  2. The remaining cats and fish are for Teo and Tun. Teo doesn't raise cats, so Teo raises fish.
  3. The other one is a cat, so Tun raises cat.

Teaching tip: draw a table with 3 rows (Ti, Teo, Tun) and 3 columns (cat, dog, fish). If the sentence says "no", cross that box. If there is only one empty cell left in the row, you will find the answer. This is the way to solve all future problems "who raises what animal".

Part 2: Arithmetic (questions 4 to 6)

Verse 4

Find the next number in the sequence: 3, 7, 11, 15, ...

See lyrics solution

Answer: 19.

  1. Find how much the sequence increases each time: 7 − 3 = 4, 11 − 7 = 4, 15 − 11 = 4.
  2. The sequence keeps adding 4 after each number. The next number is 15 + 4 = 19.

With the number sequence, always start with the question "How much is added (or subtracted) from one number to the other?". Children can jump on the ruler or number line to see that the steps are equal.

Question 5

Quick calculation: 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 + 8 + 9 = ?

See solution

Answer: 45.

  1. Pair the numbers into pairs whose sum is 10: 1 + 9, 2 + 8, 3 + 7, 4 + 6. There are 4 pairs.
  2. 4 pairs, each pair has 10, giving 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 = 40.
  3. And the number 5 stands alone: 40 + 5 = 45.

"Calculate "quick" means finding a way to combine them skillfully, not adding each number one by one. Parents, please praise your child's matching method, even if the child's matching is still correct.

Question 6

An and Binh have a total of 20 candies. An has 4 more than Binh. How many candies does An have?

See solution

Answer: 12 candies.

  1. If An takes out 4 pieces (the larger part), the two of you will have the same number of candies. At that time, the total remains 20 − 4 = 16 pieces.
  2. 16 pieces are divided equally between 2 people, each person has 8 pieces. That's Binh's number of candies.
  3. An has 4 more candies than Binh: 8 + 4 = 12 candies.

Check again: 12 + 8 = 20 and 12 − 8 = 4, both conditions are correct. For grade 1 children who have not yet learned to divide, parents can use 20 beans: set aside 4 beans for An, and divide the rest equally into two piles.

Part 3: Number theory (questions 7 to 9)

Question 7

What is the largest number with two different digits?

See solution

Answer: 98.

  1. If you want the largest number, the tens digit must be as large as possible: choose 9.
  2. The units digit must be different from 9, so choose the largest remaining number which is 8.
  3. The number to look for is 98.

Common mistake: answering 99. Ask your child again "Are the two digits of 99 different?". Carefully reading each word in the question is the most important skill of the thinking test.

Question 8

How many two-digit numbers have the sum of the two digits equal to 5?

See solution

Answer: 5 numbers.

  1. The tens digit cannot be 0. Try the tens from 1 to 5 one by one and then find the ones to sum to 5.
  2. Tens 1: number 14. Tens 2: number 23. Tens 3: number 32. Tens 4: number 41. Tens 5: number 50.
  3. Tens of 6 or more are greater than 5, no way.

There are all 5 numbers: 14, 23, 32, 41, 50. Children often forget the number 50 because they think "0 doesn't count". Writing in increasing tens order helps your child not miss anything.

Question 9

Na writes the numbers from 1 to 30 on the board. How many 2s did Na write?

See solution

Answer: 13 2s.

  1. Count the 2s in units place: 2, 12, 22. There are 3 times.
  2. Count the digit 2 in tens: 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29. There are 10 times.
  3. Add up: 3 + 10 = 13 digits 2.

The number 22 has two digits 2, so it is counted in both steps. This is where many children incorrectly answer 12. Letting your child write down the number 2 on paper and then circle each number 2 is the surest way to check.

Part 4: Geometry (questions 10 to 12)

Question 10

How many triangles are there in the figure?

Triangle ABC, has an additional line segment connecting vertex A to point D on side BCABCD
Question 10. Triangle ABC has an additional line segment AD.
See solution

Answer: 3 triangles.

  1. Count the small triangles (one piece): ABD and ADC. There are 2 pictures.
  2. Count the triangle made from 2 pieces: ABC (big outside triangle). There is 1 shape.
  3. Total: 2 + 1 = 3 triangles.

Good habit: count from small to large, and name each shape by the letter at the top. The child often forgets the big triangle outside.

Question 11

Bo uses a matchstick to arrange 2 adjacent squares as shown. Bo wants to arrange 3 adjacent squares in a row. How many matches does Bo need in total?

Two adjacent squares arranged with 7 match sticks, sharing a stick in the middle
Question 11. Two adjacent squares arranged with match sticks.
See solution

Answer: 10 matchsticks.

  1. Count the existing shape: 2 adjacent squares use 7 sticks (not 8, because the middle stick is shared).
  2. To add 1 square next to it, just add 3 sticks: one above, one below, one on the right. The stick on the left is already available.
  3. Number of sticks needed: 7 + 3 = 10 matches.

If there are toothpicks at home, let your child arrange them for real. Children will discover for themselves that "each new square only needs 3 more sticks", a rule that can be used for rows of 4 and 5 squares.

Question 12

How many squares are there in the picture?

A large square is divided into a grid of 2 rows and 2 columns of squares. small
Question 12. The large square is divided into 4 small squares.
See solution

Answer: 5 squares.

  1. Small square (1 cell): has 4 shapes.
  2. Big square includes all 4 squares: there is 1 picture.
  3. Total: 4 + 1 = 5 squares.

Ask the child further: "Does combining 2 squares make a square?" The two cells combined form a long rectangle, not a square. This question helps children distinguish between two types.

Part 5: Combination (questions 13 to 15)

Question 13

From home to market, there are 2 roads. From the market to the school there are 3 roads. Ask Ha how many ways are there to go from home, through the market, to school?

See solution

Answer: 6 ways.

  1. Name the road from house to market as road 1, road 2. The road from market to school is a, b, c.
  2. Going route 1, there are 3 ways to continue: 1a, 1b, 1c.
  3. Going route 2 also has 3 ways: 2a, 2b, 2c.
  4. Total: 3 + 3 = 6 .

Draw a diagram of the house, market, school and connecting curves, then let your child try each method with his finger. Listing in order helps children not miss things.

Question 14

There are 3 cards with numbers 0, 1, 2. Use 2 different cards to combine them into a two-digit number. How many numbers can be combined?

See solution

Answer: 4 numbers.

  1. The tens digit cannot be 0. So the tens digit can only be 1 or 2.
  2. The tens place is 1: the ones place is 0 or 2, giving 10, 12.
  3. The tens place is 2: the places place is 0 or 1, getting 20, 21.

Combined 4 numbers: 10, 12, 20, 21. The numbers "01" or "02" are not two-digit numbers. This is a familiar trap of this type of lesson.

Verse 15

Five people meet each other. Each person shakes each other person's hand exactly once. How many handshakes are there?

See solution

Answer: 10 handshakes.

  1. The first person shakes hands with the remaining 4 people: 4 times.
  2. The second person has already shaken hands with the first person, there is only one more left to shake. 3 people's hands: 3.
  3. The third person has 2 left, the fourth person has 1 left, the fifth person has shaken all hands.
  4. Total: 4 + 3 + 2 + 1 = 10 handshakes.

Common mistake: take 5 people, 4 for each person, to get 20. But when An shakes Binh's hand, it's also Binh shaking An's hand, just one. Drawing 5 dots and connecting the dots together is how children can count on their own.

Arranged scoring board

Each correct sentence gets 1 point. Record the number of correct sentences for each array in the third column. The results by array are more useful than the total score, because it shows what kind of thinking the child needs to practice more.

ArraySentenceChildren are correctIf less than 2 sentences are correct, practice
Logic1, 2, 3…/3Practice drawing diagrams, drawing tables or arranging real objects before answering; Read each fact sentence slowly.
Arithmetic4, 5, 6…/3Practice finding pairs of numbers round tens and hundreds and drawing line diagrams for sums and differences.
Number theory7, 8, 9…/3List in order (by tens, hundreds) and underline all conditions in the problem.
Geometry10, 11, 12…/3Count from small to large shapes, name the shapes using real letters, sticks or blocks to check.
Combinations13, 14, 15…/3List in tables or branch diagrams; Be careful of double counting (An-Binh and Binh-An are one).
Total1 to 15…/15From 12 sentences or more: your child has mastered this form. From 8 to 11 sentences: practice more weak areas. Less than 8 questions: back to more basic lessons, no need to take exam questions.

The above levels are just suggestions from Karotto for parents to choose the next step, not the scoring scale of any exam. If you want to see more about each type of lesson and how to teach it, parents should read the lesson Common forms of mental math in elementary school.

Continue practicing in the Karotto app

Transparency: Karotto is the app of the team that makes this website. In the "Number Garden" Math course, the 1st grade TIMO-style practice session is located on island M4 (for 6-year-old children), interspersed between regular courses, with all 5 areas of logic, arithmetic, number theory, geometry, and combinatorics as mentioned above.

Logic sentence in the Karotto app: the frog friend is a boy, there are 3 girls and 2 boys, ask the frog friend's parents how many people there are. con
A logical sentence in the TIMO-style training phase of Karotto: "In the family, the frog is a boy and has 3 younger sisters and 2 younger brothers. How many children did the frog's parents have?"
  • Self-generation training question: at the end of the island there are exam practice questions. The test is generated by the app itself, it doesn't copy the actual test, so each time it's a different test and the child can't memorize the answers.
  • There is a timer, marked by arrays: the child takes the test with a clock like taking an exam, then sees the score of each array like the self-scoring table above.
  • Review the sentence wrong: after submitting the assignment, the child reopens the correct incorrect questions to see the solution.
  • Voice reads the question: the question and instructions are read out loud in Vietnamese, so children who are not fluent in reading can still practice on their own.
  • Suggestion 3 hiccup: when stuck, the child is gently reminded first, then the illustration, and finally the answer with explanation.

Every day the child can learn a suitable amount of lessons for free, all islands are open. If you want unlimited training, the Premium package is a one-time purchase, lifetime use, no monthly or yearly subscription, no periodic deduction. The app has no ads.

In short

Let your child take a timed test, grade each section, then carefully correct each wrong sentence. One problem solved carefully is more useful than three problems done hastily. If you get less than 2 questions correct, practice that area more before taking a new test.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this a real TIMO test?

No. This is a question prepared by the Karotto team in 5 areas of logic, arithmetic, number theory, geometry, and combinatorics, with the same format as common articles. Karotto is not affiliated with TIMO organizers. If you want to see the real test, parents should find the official documents of the organizer.

How long should your child take this test?

Suggest about 40 minutes for all 15 questions, or about 3 minutes per question. The first time can be divided into two sessions, each session has 2 or 3 segments. The important thing is that your child gets used to doing homework on time while still reading the problem carefully.

How to correct your child's homework effectively?

Let your child explain how to do it before opening the solution. For a wrong sentence, find the correct step that your child misunderstood and then let your child try the sentence again the next day. Record scores for each area to know which areas need more practice.

How do first graders who cannot read fluently do the test?

Parents read the question to their child, read each sentence twice, then let the child think and answer for themselves. Reading ability should not be a barrier when practicing thinking. You can let your child use a stick, a bean or draw on paper.

Practice mental math every day with Thỏ Bông

Automatically generated TIMO-style practice questions, with timer, marking in arrays, with Vietnamese voice and solutions for each wrong question.

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