Critter Rescue Worksheet
Critter Rescue Math
Grade 3 • Addition & Subtraction Story Missions
Name:
Date:
Ranger Problem-Solving Steps:
1 Circle key numbers 2 Choose (+) or (-) 3 Show work & label
1
Ranger Maya gathered 264 acorns for the squirrel rescue nursery on Monday. On Tuesday, volunteers brought in 358 more acorns. How many acorns did the shelter collect in all?
Show Your Work:
Number Sentence:
Final Answer:
acorns
2
The deer pen had a large storage bin with 650 pounds of grain. Over the week, the hungry fawns ate 376 pounds of grain. How many pounds of grain are left in the storage bin?
Show Your Work:
Number Sentence:
Final Answer:
pounds
3
Last spring, the wild bird clinic examined 412 songbirds and 285 owls. How many more songbirds than owls did the clinic examine?
Show Your Work:
Number Sentence:
Final Answer:
more birds
Critter Rescue Math • Page 1 of 2 Oak Valley Wildlife Shelter
Part 2: Two-Step Rescue Missions
Take it step-by-step! Solve the first part before finding the total.
Name:
4
On Saturday morning, 185 visitors came to the turtle pond. In the afternoon, 142 more visitors arrived. Before 4:00 PM, a tour group of 69 people left on a bus. How many visitors remained at the pond?
Step 1: Morning + Afternoon
Step 2: Subtract Who Left
Answer:
people
5
The medical team had a carton of 500 healing bandages. They used 146 bandages for wounded bunnies and 187 bandages for injured raccoons. How many bandages are left in the carton?
Step 1: Total Bandages Used
Step 2: Subtract From 500
Answer:
left
Ranger Challenge • Create Your Own Story Problem!
Write a story problem about shelter animals that matches this equation: 420 − 175 = ?
Your Story Problem:
Solve & Check:
Critter Rescue Math • Page 2 of 2 Great job solving like a wildlife ranger!
Critter Rescue Answer Key
Teacher Resource Grade 3 Math • Operations in Base Ten
Critter Rescue • Answer Key
Page 1 Solutions
Expect students to record proper units with each answer. Check for correct place-value regrouping notations.
1 Acorn Collection (Addition with Regrouping)
Answer: 622 acorns
Solution Steps:
1 1 (regroup) 2 6 4
+ 3 5 8
-------
6 2 2
• Ones: 4 + 8 = 12 (write 2, carry 1 ten)
• Tens: 1 + 6 + 5 = 12 (write 2, carry 1 hundred)
• Hundreds: 1 + 2 + 3 = 6
• Sentence: 264 + 358 = 622
Common Error Note:
Watch for students who write 512 or 612 by forgetting to add the regrouped ten or hundred into the next column.
2 Deer Feed Storage (Subtraction with Regrouping Across Tens)
Answer: 274 pounds
Solution Steps:
5 14 10 (regroup) 6 5 0
- 3 7 6
-------
2 7 4
• Ones: Regroup 1 ten into 10 ones; 10 − 6 = 4
• Tens: 4 tens remain. Regroup 1 hundred into 10 tens; 14 − 7 = 7
• Hundreds: 5 − 3 = 2
• Sentence: 650 − 376 = 274
Common Error Note:
Students often mistakenly flip digits: calculating 6 − 0 = 6 instead of regrouping to get 10 − 6 = 4, yielding an incorrect answer of 326.
3 Bird Comparison (Difference Story Problem)
Answer: 127 more birds
Solution Steps:
3 10 12 (regroup) 4 1 2
- 2 8 5
-------
1 2 7
• Ones: Regroup 1 ten → 12 ones; 12 − 5 = 7
• Tens: 0 tens left. Regroup 1 hundred → 10 tens; 10 − 8 = 2
• Hundreds: 3 − 2 = 1
• Sentence: 412 − 285 = 127
Concept Reminder:
"How many more" cues comparison subtraction, not addition. Check that students recognize the comparison model rather than combining 412 + 285.
Critter Rescue Math • Teacher Answer Key Page 1 of 2
Part 2 Solutions & Rubric
Multi-step story structures and challenge problem criteria
Page 2 Solutions
4
Visitor Flow (Add, then Subtract) 185 morning + 142 afternoon − 69 departed
Answer: 258 visitors
Step 1: Total who arrived
185 + 142 = 327 total visitors
Regrouping: 5+2=7; 8+4=12 (carry 1); 1+1+1=3.
Step 2: Subtract visitors who left
327 − 69 = 258 visitors left
Regrouping: 17 − 9 = 8; 11 − 6 = 5; 2 − 0 = 2.
5
Carton Bandages (Combine Parts, Subtract from Whole) 500 total − (146 bunny bandages + 187 raccoon bandages)
Answer: 167 bandages left
Method A (Standard 2-Step):
146 + 187 = 333 used
500 − 333 = 167 remaining
Method B (Sequential Subtraction):
500 − 146 = 354
354 − 187 = 167 remaining
6 Ranger Challenge • Story Creation & Solution Guide
Equation Target: 420 − 175 = 245
Exemplar Student Story:
"The wildlife shelter had 420 baby fish swimming in the rescue pond. Rangers released 175 of the fish into Pine Creek. How many fish are still swimming in the rescue pond?"
1. Story Context (1 pt)
Story features a realistic animal/shelter theme and clearly describes a "take away" or "comparison" scenario.
2. Numbers Used (1 pt)
Correctly uses 420 as the starting whole and 175 as the part removed/compared.
3. Accurate Math (1 pt)
Correct calculation of 245 with clear regrouping work shown and proper unit labeled.
Critter Rescue Math • Teacher Answer Key Page 2 of 2
