Addition with Regrouping — Lesson Note
LESSON NOTE
Addition with Regrouping (Carrying)
Combined Class — Grade 4 & Grade 5 | Duration: 40 Minutes
Subject Mathematics
Topic Addition of Numbers with Regrouping (Carrying)
Class Grade 4 and Grade 5 (combined)
Duration 40 minutes
Prior Knowledge Pupils can add numbers without regrouping and know basic place value
(ones, tens, hundreds, thousands).
Lesson Objectives
By the end of the lesson, pupils should be able to:
● Explain, in their own words, what 'regrouping' (carrying) means in addition.
● Add 2- to 4-digit numbers correctly using regrouping (Grade 4: mainly 2–3 digits; Grade 5: 3–4 digits).
● Solve simple word problems that require addition with regrouping.
● Check their answers using estimation or by adding in reverse order.
Materials Needed
● Chalkboard / whiteboard and chalk or marker
● Pupils' notebooks and pencils
● Place value chart drawn on the board (Thousands, Hundreds, Tens, Ones)
● Optional: bundles of straws or counters (10s and 1s) for physical demonstration
Key Vocabulary
Regroup / Carry To exchange 10 units of one place value for 1 unit of the next higher place
value
Sum The answer/result of an addition
Addend Any number being added
Column addition Adding numbers by lining up their place values in vertical columns
Lesson Timing at a Glance (40 Minutes)
Time Stage What Happens
5 min Introduction / Warm-Up Review addition without regrouping; introduce
today's topic
8 min Explanation of Concept Teacher explains regrouping using place value
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Addition with Regrouping — Lesson Note
Time Stage What Happens
chart and a live example
7 min Worked Examples Teacher solves 2–3 examples on the board,
thinking aloud
10 min Guided Practice Pupils solve problems on the board and in
notebooks with teacher support
7 min Independent / Differentiated Grade 4 and Grade 5 pupils work on levelled
Practice questions
3 min Closure & Exit Check Quick recap, one exit-ticket question, assign
take-home task
Step-by-Step Teaching Guide
1. Introduction / Warm-Up (5 minutes)
Begin by writing a simple addition question without regrouping on the board, e.g. 23 + 15. Ask a pupil to solve it
quickly to remind the class how normal column addition works.
Then write a number like 28 + 17 and ask: 'What happens when we add the ones column and get a two-digit
answer?' Let two or three pupils guess. Use this curiosity to introduce today's topic: Addition with Regrouping.
2. Explanation of the Concept (8 minutes)
Explain clearly: 'Regrouping means that when we add digits in a column and the total is 10 or more, we cannot
fit all of it in one column. So we write down the ones digit and carry the extra ten(s) over to the next column.'
Draw a place value chart on the board (Thousands | Hundreds | Tens | Ones) and demonstrate with 28 + 17:
● Add the ones column first: 8 + 7 = 15.
● 15 has 1 ten and 5 ones — write 5 in the ones column, and carry the 1 ten over to the tens column.
● Add the tens column, including the carried 1: 2 + 1 + 1(carried) = 4.
● Final answer: 45.
If straws or counters are available, physically bundle 10 loose straws into 1 bundle of ten to show pupils exactly
what 'carrying' looks like — this is especially helpful for Grade 4 pupils who are meeting the concept for the first
time.
Teacher Tip
Say the process out loud every time you demonstrate: 'Add the ones. Ten or more? Write the ones
digit, carry the ten.' Repeating the same sentence pattern helps pupils memorise the steps.
3. Worked Examples (7 minutes)
Solve the following on the board, thinking aloud at every step. Start simple, then increase difficulty:
1. 46 + 38 (2-digit, single regrouping)
2. 254 + 168 (3-digit, regrouping in more than one column)
3. 1,486 + 2,375 (4-digit, for Grade 5 — regrouping across three columns)
Full working for example 2 (254 + 168):
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Addition with Regrouping — Lesson Note
● Ones: 4 + 8 = 12 → write 2, carry 1
● Tens: 5 + 6 + 1(carried) = 12 → write 2, carry 1
● Hundreds: 2 + 1 + 1(carried) = 4
● Answer: 422
4. Guided Practice (10 minutes)
Invite pupils up to the board in pairs (one Grade 4, one Grade 5 pupil together where possible) to solve the
following as a class, with the teacher guiding and correcting:
1. 57 + 26
2. 183 + 249
3. 2,346 + 1,578
4. A shop sold 375 pens on Monday and 468 pens on Tuesday. How many pens were sold altogether?
While pupils work, circulate and check that everyone is lining up digits correctly by place value — this is the
most common error at this stage.
5. Independent / Differentiated Practice (7 minutes)
Pupils now work quietly in their notebooks. Because this is a combined class, give two levels of questions so
each grade is appropriately challenged.
Grade 4 — Core Questions (2 to 3 digits)
● 38 + 47
● 164 + 259
● 276 + 148
● A farmer picked 235 oranges in the morning and 189 in the afternoon. How many oranges did he pick in
all?
Grade 5 — Extended Questions (3 to 4 digits)
● 1,247 + 3,586
● 4,908 + 2,375
● 2,764 + 1,857 + 350 (three addends)
● A school library received 3,240 new books this term and already had 5,675 books. How many books
does the library have now?
Pupils who finish early may check a partner's work or attempt one question from the other grade's list.
6. Closure & Exit Check (3 minutes)
Bring the class back together. Ask one or two pupils to explain, in their own words, what regrouping means and
why we do it.
Exit ticket (each pupil answers on a small slip of paper before leaving):
Solve: 349 + 276 = ?
Collect the slips quickly to see who may need extra help before the next lesson.
Assessment & Evaluation
● Formative: observation during guided practice; correctness of board work; exit ticket accuracy.
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Addition with Regrouping — Lesson Note
● Summative (optional take-home task): 5 mixed addition-with-regrouping questions, differentiated by
grade as shown above.
Common Errors to Watch For
● Forgetting to carry the extra ten to the next column.
● Carrying the wrong digit (writing '1' as if it were '10' instead of adding it as 1 to the next column).
● Misaligning digits in columns, especially when addends have a different number of digits.
● Adding the carried number last instead of including it in the column total from the start.
Take-Home Task
Grade 4: Solve 4 addition problems with 2–3 digit numbers (regrouping in at least 2 of them).
Grade 5: Solve 4 addition problems with 3–4 digit numbers, including one problem with three addends.
All pupils: Write one sentence explaining, in your own words, what 'carrying' means in addition.
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