Single-Digit Addition: A Range of Strategies for Solving 8 + 7
By Cindy Aossey (KCM) & Funda Gonulates (NKU)
Students expand their understanding of addition strategies through number talks that promote
flexibility and fluency with numbers. In this video, we walk through various strategies students
might use to solve 8 + 7, including counting on, make-a-ten, pretend-a-ten, and near doubles. We
show why these strategies work by modeling with a concrete manipulative (snap cubes) and connect the
concrete representations to symbolic notation. Through experiences such as these, students learn to
recognize the structure of numbers, understand how to compose and decompose to make ten, and build a
foundation for efficient and flexible mental computation.