Second Grade Math Skills Test Practice

Math symbols are the shorthand of arithmetic, and second graders meet a lot of them at once. A plus sign tells them to join two amounts, a minus sign tells them to take one away, and the greater than, less than, and equal signs tell them how two numbers compare. Students who can read those signs quickly can read a number sentence the way they read a word sentence, which is exactly what standardized tests expect them to do. This second grade math skills test practice worksheet gives students focused practice choosing the right symbol for the job, first with addition and subtraction within 100 and then with three-digit comparisons.

The page is built in two parts so students move from one decision to two. In Part A they read six number sentences such as 26 □ 13 = 39 and fill in the bubble for the sign that makes the sentence true, which means actually computing both possibilities before answering. In Part B they compare pairs of three-digit numbers and write the greater than, less than, or equal sign in the box. Use this 2nd grade math symbols worksheet as a warm-up, as a quick check after a comparing-numbers lesson, as test-prep practice with a bubble format students will see again, or as homework. The bubbles make it easy to grade at a glance, and the boxed answers on Part B keep handwriting neat.

What’s Included

• 1 print-ready PDF worksheet
• Answer key
• 6 fill-in-the-bubble number sentences and 6 three-digit comparison problems

There are three reasons this second grade math skills test practice worksheet helps children learn symbols instead of guessing at them. First, every item has exactly one defensible answer, so students have to compute or compare rather than pattern-match. Second, the two parts separate operation signs from comparison signs, which keeps the two ideas from blurring together the way they often do on a mixed review page. Third, the fill-in-the-bubble format mirrors the answer sheets students meet on state assessments, so the practice builds test stamina alongside the math.

Teachers and parents can stretch the skill well past the page. Write two numbers on index cards, hand a child a card with a large greater than sign on it, and let them turn the card to make the statement true. Play a symbol scavenger hunt through a store receipt or a sports page, circling every plus, minus, and equal sign. Say a number sentence out loud and have the child hold up fingers crossed into a plus or laid flat into a minus. Roll dice to build two three-digit numbers and race to call out which is larger. Small, repeated moments like these turn the symbols into something children read rather than decode.

Related Resources

• Less Than Greater Than Worksheet
• Greater Than, Less Than, or Equal To Assessment Worksheet
• Greater Than Less Than Dolphin Activity
• Greater Than Less Than Inequalities Song (Have Fun Teaching)