Students use addition and subtraction within 20 to solve real snack-count problems that matter in their classroom and cafeteria community. They investigate how many are needed, how many are left, and how many are altogether by working with counters, drawings, equations, and simple count-on strategies in shared stations and partner tasks. Through collaboration with cafeteria staff, short reflection huddles, and feedback-based revisions, students build accuracy, persistence, and confidence while creating math placemats they can use during snack time. The learning experience leads to a family-facing showcase where students explain their strategies and demonstrate how math helps solve everyday problems.

Students solve real snack-count word problems by adding and subtracting within 20, including finding how many are needed, how many are left, and how many are altogether with objects, drawings, counting, and equations. They explain and check their thinking during station work, cafeteria huddles, and revision conversations, including problems with one unknown and some three-number addition situations. Students create accurate math placemats and posters that help others use quick addition and subtraction facts during snack time. They also work with classmates and the cafeteria staff member by listening, sharing strategies, and setting a goal for their next math task.

Students create math placemats for snack time that show quick addition and subtraction facts within 20 with pictures, equations, and simple strategies classmates can use in the classroom cafeteria area. Throughout the project, they also make cafeteria math posters, station recording cards, and small counting-tool sets with counters or bundled groups to show how many are needed, left, and altogether. After feedback from the cafeteria staff member and classmates during short huddles, students revise their totals, labels, and explanations for accuracy and clarity. By the end, they present the finished placemats and posters at the Snack Count Showcase and lead families through brief counting games connected to real snack-count problems.

Kick off with a Cafeteria Count Challenge in which students rotate through quick hands-on stations using real or pretend snack items to make groups of 20 or less, compare sets, and solve “needed, left, and altogether” problems. Invite a cafeteria staff member to introduce a simple serving problem, such as figuring out how many apples are needed for a class snack or how many crackers are left after serving, so students connect the math to a real school job. End with a brief huddle where students share one addition or subtraction strategy they used and predict how math helpers could support snack time in the classroom and cafeteria.

Host a Snack Count Showcase in the classroom or cafeteria where students display their math placemats and cafeteria math posters for families and the cafeteria staff member. Students rotate through simple stations, explaining snack-count problems about how many are needed, left, and altogether, and show their strategies with counters, drawings, and equations. Include a short counting game led by students so visitors can try addition and subtraction within 20 alongside them. End with students sharing one math strategy they improved and how feedback helped them revise their work.