Maths › Adding and taking away › Subtraction on a number line
Subtraction on a number line: jump back to the answer
Free printable number line subtraction worksheets, taking away within 10, 20 or 100. Children start at the first number and jump back. Choose sheets where they draw the jumps, read the jumps, or find the missing jump. Every sheet comes with an answer page.
How to take away on a number line
1Find the first numberPut your finger on it, or draw a dot.
2Jump backMake one jump back for every number you take away, counting back as you go.
3Land on the answerThe number you land on is what’s left.
- Always start at the bigger number. In subtraction the first number is where you start, and you jump back from it.
- Use 10 as a stepping stone. For 13 − 5, jump back 3 to reach 10, then 2 more to 8. This “back to 10” habit makes mental subtraction much faster.
- Jump back in tens for bigger numbers. For 57 − 23, jump back 20 in two tens (47, 37), then 3 ones (34).
- Practise crossing any ten, not just 10 and 20. Choose Across tens to get sums like 32 − 3 or 54 − 7 on a short line from 20 to 40 or 40 to 60, so the jumps stay big and easy to draw.
- Or count up to find the difference. For 52 − 48, it’s quicker to jump up from 48 to 52: that’s 4.
- Try an empty number line. Once children are confident, a plain line with only the numbers they need is quicker to draw and works for any size of number.
Make a subtraction sheet
Choose the size of the numbers, the kind of sheet and the jumps, then roll for a fresh one.
Tips for parents
- Act it out first. Chalk a number line on the path or lay out cushions and jump along it before using paper.
- Say the numbers as you jump. “Twelve… eleven, ten, nine, eight, seven.” Counting back out loud is the skill the line is teaching.
- Move from ones to bigger jumps. When jumps of one are easy, show the jump back to 10, then jumps of ten.
- Check by jumping on. If 12 − 5 = 7, then jumping on 5 from 7 should land on 12.
In the National Curriculum for England, Year 1 children use the number line to represent numbers and add and subtract within 20. In Year 2 they subtract ones, tens and two-digit numbers from a two-digit number, and use the inverse relationship between adding and subtracting to check.