Summary
Chapter 5 of the Class 1 Maths NCERT textbook (Joyful Mathematics), "How Many?", introduces young learners to addition and subtraction through hands-on activities, stories, games, and real-life counting situations.
- Combining Groups — Addition as "Altogether" — Children practise adding two groups of objects by combining them and counting the total. Words like "altogether", "total", and "in all" are connected to the plus (+) sign and equals (=) sign through sentences such as "4 children and 2 children altogether make 6 children".
- Activity-Based Addition Practice — The chapter uses fun activities — rolling two dice and totalling the dots, colouring beads on a string to show a sum, and hopping forward on a number strip — to give children many different ways to practise addition facts up to 10.
- Adding in Different Ways — Children see addition written horizontally (2 + 3 = ) and vertically (2 on top, + 3 below) and are shown that both forms give the same answer. A "number pairs" exercise shows that different pairs such as 7+1, 5+3, 2+6, and 1+7 can all make the same total (8).
- Subtraction — How Many Left? — Through story situations (frogs jumping away, balloons flying off, bananas being eaten) and backward hops on a number strip, children learn that subtraction means finding how many are left after some objects are taken away.
- Hidden Dots and Subtraction Patterns — A "ten dots card" activity asks children to hide some dots and say how many are hidden and how many are visible, building an early understanding that a total can be split into two parts in different ways.
Key points & formulas
- 01Addition means finding how many altogether when two groups are combined (aggregation) or when more objects are added to an existing group (augmentation).
- 02Key addition vocabulary: "altogether", "total", "sum", "in all" — all connected to the + and = symbols.
- 03The dice game asks children to roll two dice, add the dots, and compare totals with a friend.
- 04The beads-and-string activity uses colouring to show addition facts such as 3+4, 5+4, and 7+3.
- 05Hopping backwards on a number strip shows subtraction — for example, jumping 3 steps back from 9 gives 6.
- 06A hidden-dots card activity with 10 dots builds early understanding of how a number can be split into two parts.
- 07Addition can be written horizontally (2+3=5) and vertically (2 on top, +3 below) to give the same answer.
Frequently asked questions
01What is Chapter 5 of Joyful Mathematics Class 1 about?
It is about addition and subtraction. Children learn to find "how many altogether" when they combine two groups and "how many are left" when some objects are taken away.
02What does "altogether" mean in maths?
"Altogether" means the total when two groups are joined together. For example, 4 children and 2 children altogether make 6 children, which is written as 4 + 2 = 6.
03What addition sums are practised in this chapter?
Children practise sums such as 4+2, 3+1, 3+2, 4+3, 6+2, 7+1, 5+3, 5+4, 9+1, and many more, all with totals up to 10.
04How is the dice game played in this chapter?
Two children take turns rolling two dice together and add the dots on both dice to find the total. The child with the higher total in each round wins that round.
05What is the beads-and-string activity?
Children colour beads on a string to match two numbers being added — for example, 3 beads of one colour and 4 of another for 3+4 — then count all the coloured beads to find the sum.
06What is the "Hop and Find the Sum" activity?
Children hop forward on a numbered strip to add two numbers. For instance, starting at 4 and hopping 2 steps forward lands on 6, showing that 4+2=6.
07What is the hidden-dots card activity?
Children make a card with 10 dots and hide some dots using their hand or a handkerchief. They then work out how many dots are hidden and how many are visible, exploring pairs that make 10.
08What does subtraction mean in this chapter?
Subtraction means finding how many objects are left after some are taken away. For example, if there are 6 frogs and 2 jump away, the subtraction sentence is 6 − 2 = 4.
09How does hopping on a number strip help with subtraction?
Children jump backwards on the strip by the number being subtracted. For example, jumping 3 steps back from 9 lands on 6, showing that 9 − 3 = 6.
10What is the "Five Little Children" poem about?
It is a rhyme where children step out one by one from a group of five. After each verse, children answer how many are left, practising counting down and early subtraction.
11Can addition be written in more than one way?
Yes. The chapter shows addition written horizontally (2 + 3 = 5) and vertically with one number above the other. Both ways give the same answer.
12What number pairs make 8 in the chapter?
The chapter shows that 7+1, 5+3, 2+6, and 1+7 all equal 8, teaching children that different pairs of numbers can add up to the same total.
13What are the addition story problems in this chapter?
Raghav has 4 shells and Sarita has 5 shells (total?), Ranjeet has 3 marbles and Meenakshi has 6 marbles (total?), and a problem about coconuts in two bags. Children find how many there are altogether.
14What project work is given at the end of Chapter 5?
One project asks children to use cards numbered 0 to 9 and arrange two cards so their sum equals 9, finding as many ways as possible. Another asks them to find out how many people at home go to school, go to work, or stay at home.
More chapters in Joyful Mathematics
Read Chapter 5 of Joyful Mathematics, the Class 1 Mathematics NCERT textbook (2026-27 edition), online for free: the complete chapter as published by NCERT with every diagram, solved example and exercise, with step-by-step solutions, answers and revision notes. Open the NCERT PDF above, or browse all NCERT Class 1 textbooks.
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