Subtraction Teaching Resources
Browse subtraction worksheets, games and more teacher-created activities for your lesson plans!
Aligned with the Australian maths curriculum, including version 9.0, each resource in this subtraction collection has been carefully reviewed and curated by our expert teachers to ensure it's ready to use with your students!
Browse printables and digital activities for teaching students how to take away, use subtraction to compare quantities, subtract two-digit numbers with regrouping, solve word problems and so much more!
Whether you're teaching your year 1 class to add and subtract within 20 or your year 3 students how to fluently subtract within 1,000, or you're explaining to a year 6 group how to add or subtract integers on a number line, there are plenty of options for your planning.
New to teaching subtraction, or just looking for new ways to engage your students? Read on for a primer from our teacher team, including a kid-friendly definition to explain what it means to subtract, plus a look at the subtraction sign and more maths vocabulary that will help you plan your lessons.
What Is Subtraction? A Kid-Friendly Definition
If you're teaching early years students and introducing subtraction for the very first time, you may need a definition that can help you explain what it means to subtract numbers.
Subtraction is a maths operation we can use when we have a number and we want to find out what's left when we take away another number.
For example, let's imagine you have 5 toys, and your friend takes 2 of them home. How can you determine how many toys are left? You can use subtraction!
If you subtract 2 from the number 5, you are left with 3.
What Is the Subtraction Sign Called?
There are several maths symbols and signs that help us understand the relationships between numbers in our maths problems. Students should learn early on to identify the subtraction symbol, which is called the minus sign.
The minus sign (-) looks like a short line.
When it is placed between two numbers, it lets us know that we should subtract the number on the right from the number on the left.
For example, look at the subtraction problem below:
- 6-3
In this problem, the minus sign tells us that you will need to subtract — or take away — 3 from the number 6.
What Is the Answer to a Subtraction Problem Called?
Teaching maths in primary school involves teaching a significant amount of maths vocabulary!
When it comes to subtraction, one word kids need to learn early on is 'difference' — this is the word we use for the answer to a subtraction problem.
What Are the Numbers Called in Subtraction?
Words like subtraction, difference and minus are commonly used in the classroom, but what about the numbers in a subtraction problem?
These are not typically taught to students, but it can be helpful to keep the names of the numbers in a subtraction problem in your back pocket anyway!
- Minuend — This is the number on the left in a subtraction problem. It is the number that you are 'taking away' from.
- Subtrahend — This is the number on the right in a subtraction problem. It is the number that you are 'taking away.'
Teaching Kids How to Subtract — 3 Fun Ideas From Our Teacher Team
Looking for some tips on teaching subtraction? This collection of resources is full of ideas from our expert maths teachers, but we didn't stop there.
Here are some tips that may help you teach kids how to subtract and build their fluency!
1. Focus on Missing Addends
Missing addend addition is sometimes easier for kids to grasp when tackling subtraction problems.
For example, rather than 17 - 8, gear your students to think, '8 plus what equals 17?'
2. Teach Regrouping With Base-10 Blocks
Students need to understand they aren't changing the value of the minuend in the subtraction problem, just what it looks like. For example, 42 is still 42, even if it's represented as 30 + 12 instead of 40 + 2.
This is where it helps to teach the concept of regrouping using Base-10 or MAB blocks.
3. Use Subtraction Rhymes
Using fun rhymes as mnemonics in subtraction can help your student remember the rules. Here's one of our favourites for teaching students subtraction with regrouping:
More on top?
No need to stop!
More on the floor?
Go next door.
Add 10 more.
If the numbers are the same, then 0 is the name!
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Halloween 3-Digit Subtraction Worksheet
Bring a bit of spooky season into your classroom with a printable Halloween 3-Digit Subtraction worksheet.
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Printable Maths Puzzles - Subtraction Tarsia
Print a set of 7 Tarsia puzzles to practise solving single-to-multi-digit subtraction problems.
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Colour by Number - Subtraction Task Cards
Practice subtracting single and double-digit numbers with a set of subtraction colour by number task cards.
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2-Digit Subtraction with Regrouping - Year 3 Task Cards
Practise using various strategies to solve 2-digit subtraction problems with a set of task cards.
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Number Talk Task Cards - Ten Frames
Build number sense skills with this set of 30 ten and double ten frame maths talk task cards.
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Digital Pixel Art - Adding and Subtracting Integers
Practise adding and subtracting positive and negative numbers with an exciting spreadsheet pixel art activity.
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Adding and Subtracting Integers on Number Lines - Worksheet
Help your students learn to add and subtract integers on a number line with a printable adding and subtracting integers worksheet.
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Addition and Subtraction Word Problem Task Cards (Numbers 1-9)
Use a range of addition and subtraction strategies to solve twenty single-digit word problems.
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Plus One and Minus One Math Machine Worksheet
A worksheet to practise generating a number that is one more than or one less than another number.
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Maths Activity Ideas for Parents - Addition and Subtraction
An information sheet for parents or carers to use when assisting children with addition and subtraction at home.
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Doubles Subtraction Board Game
Play our doubles subtraction board game to give your students practice using doubles to solve subtraction problems.
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Adding and Subtracting Word Problems Interactive Task Cards
Engage your students with this interactive adding and subtracting word problems activity that features a variety of problem types.
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Plan a Halloween Party – Estimation Project
Plan your own Halloween party and practice estimating sums, differences and products of whole numbers and decimals with an engaging maths project!
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Number Talks - Double Digit Subtraction Task Cards
Encourage the use of mental math strategies with 2-digit subtraction number talks task cards.
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Ten More and Ten Less - Cut and Paste Worksheet
Practise adding and subtracting 10 from given numbers within 100 in this cut-and-paste worksheet.
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2-Digit Subtraction Using Bar Models - Task Cards
Review and assess your students’ subtraction skills with a set of 2-digit subtraction task cards focusing on using the part-part-whole model.
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Subtraction using Place Value Disks - Worksheet
Subtract 3-digit numbers using place value disks with a printable subtraction worksheet.
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Basic Fact Cards
A set of 72 basic addition, subtraction, multiplication and division fact cards.
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Making Tens Subtraction Worksheet
Partition numbers to subtract with a printable subtraction worksheet.
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Number Grid Interactive Activity
Share this number grid interactive activity with your students to give them practice adding and subtracting ten and one from a given number.
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Spooky 3-Digit Subtraction - Year 3 Halloween Maths Game
Practise triple-digit subtraction with regrouping with an exciting hidden picture Halloween Maths Game.
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2 Digit Subtraction Model Match-Up
Use a rigorous subtraction matching game to match subtraction word problems with number sentences, bar models, and solutions.
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2 Digit Subtraction with Place Value Disks - Matching Activity
Use place value disks to solve 2-digit subtraction problems with a matching activity.
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Subtraction Strategies - Ten Frame Printable Bingo
Practise using ten frames to subtract single-digit numbers in a whole-class bingo game.
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Sunflower Subtraction Strategies Interactive
Practise using the ten-frame subtraction strategy with a fun self-checking interactive activity.
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Pirate's Plunder - Number Line Subtraction Game
Practise using the jump strategy for subtraction from 20 with an exciting pirate-themed maths game.
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Add and Subtract Integers on a Number Line - Interactive Picture Reveal
Practise solving addition and subtraction equations with positive and negative numbers using an interactive mystery picture reveal.
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Valentine Bingo - 2-Digit Addition and Subtraction Game
Add and subtract two digit numbers to win this fun Valentine’s Day Bingo Game!
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Rearranging Parts Worksheet
Rearrange the parts of a sum to form new number sentences with this worksheet.
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Roll and Colour Worksheet - One More, One Less
An interactive worksheet to practise finding the number that is 1 more and 1 less than a given number.
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Number Talks - Making Numbers Task Cards
Build number sense skills with this set of 20 task cards.
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Number Talks - Making Ten Task Cards
Build number sense skills with this set of 20 task cards.