Adding 1-Digit Numbers
Free browser addition game for 1st and 2nd grade: solve column sums with single-digit numbers, one tap at a time. No sign-up. From the MathIt app.
Grade 1–2 · Free · No sign-up
How to play & why it works
Solve single-digit addition the way it is written in school: as a column sum. The game shows a vertical sum like 4 + 5 and you enter the answer digit by digit — the same format kids meet in their first workbooks, so practice here transfers straight to the classroom.
Addition facts within 20 are the foundation every later skill builds on. Children who can recall 7 + 6 instantly have working memory left over for the actual problem; children who finger-count spend it all on arithmetic. Short daily rounds of retrieval practice are the proven way to get there.
A useful strategy to practice here: making tens. For 8 + 5, take 2 from the 5 to make 10, then add the remaining 3. The game’s pace gives just enough time to apply the strategy until it becomes automatic.
The free MathIt app continues from here with adaptive levels, subtraction and two-digit sums, kindergarten object games for younger siblings, and family battles for 2–5 players.
Two strategies do most of the work at this stage. Make-a-ten turns 8 + 5 into 8 + 2 + 3, and near-doubles turns 6 + 7 into 6 + 6 + 1. A child who reaches for one of these is thinking; a child counting on fingers past ten is still building the number sense that makes them possible.
The column layout is deliberate. Many first graders can answer 4 + 5 said aloud but freeze at the same sum written vertically, because the format is unfamiliar rather than the arithmetic hard. Practising in the written form removes that gap before it turns into a wrong answer on a worksheet.
Skills you'll practice
Keep practicing
Frequently asked questions
What age is single-digit addition for?
Typically ages 5 to 7 — the end of kindergarten through second grade. Children who still count every object rather than counting on from the larger number usually need more work with objects first.
Should my child stop counting on their fingers?
Not by force. Finger counting is a normal stage and disappears on its own once facts become automatic. Short, frequent practice like this speeds that up; taking fingers away early tends to produce guessing instead of recall.
What comes after single-digit addition?
Number bonds to 20 and the doubles facts, then two-digit column addition. The MathIt catalogue has each of those as its own drill, so a weak step can be practised in isolation instead of re-teaching everything.
Get the full game
Adaptive difficulty, daily streaks, and live 2–5 player math battles — free on iOS and Android.