3rd Grade Addition Properties Worksheet: Commutative, Associative, Identity

We checked every answer again on the number sentences of page one. Item c was printed as 200 + 75 + 200, which is not an equation and shows no property. We changed it to 200 + 75 = 75 + 200, so the commutative answer of the key is now true. Item e shows the distributive property, which joins multiplication and addition. For that reason, the instruction now says “Identify the property” instead of “the addition property”.

We also wrote every property name the same way in the key. The first answer now says additive identity property, like the table in part two.

One question helps with every item: what changed between the two sides? If only the order of the numbers changed, it is the commutative property. If the numbers stay in order but the parentheses move, it is the associative property. Adding zero keeps a number the same, so that is the additive identity property. Finally, a number that multiplies each part inside the parentheses shows the distributive property.

In part two, your child can cross out each word of the bank once it is used, and the five boxes become a self-check. The properties of addition are a 3rd grade standard, so naming them now helps with mental math later.

Real objects make each property easy to see. Put 7 red blocks and 4 blue blocks in a row and swap the groups: the total stays 11, which is the commutative property. Next, group 2 + 15 + 3 in two different ways with coins, and count both times. Afterwards, ask your child to invent a number sentence for each property, such as 9 + 0 = 9. However, keep the game short and stop while it is still fun.