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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Jump Strategy for Subtraction – PowerPoint
Teach your students to subtract two-digit numbers using the jump strategy with an instructional teaching presentation.
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Estimating Decimal Sum and Differences — Year 6 Maths Mazes
Year 6 students can practise estimating solutions to decimal addition and subtraction equations with this set of maths mazes.
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Tens Frame - Addition and Subtraction Match-Up Activity
Build addition and subtraction skills with two tens frame matching games.
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Operations of Four Maths Machine Worksheet
A worksheet to use when practising addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.
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Polygon Puzzles - Subtraction Worksheets with Answers
Line the sum up with the corresponding answer.
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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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Place Value to the Thousands Place - Maths Mats
Practise place value concepts, addition and subtraction with a printable set of place value charts.
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Making Tens Subtraction Worksheet
Partition numbers to subtract with a printable subtraction worksheet.
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Subtraction Sausage Dog – Worksheet
A set of superb subtraction sausage dog worksheets.
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Fact Family Find and Flip - Addition and Subtraction (Upper)
Addition and subtraction game cards demonstrating the relationship between fact families.
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Fact Family Find and Flip - Addition and Subtraction (Middle)
Addition and subtraction game cards demonstrating the relationship between fact families.
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Maths Action Words – Keyword Sign Free Printables
Help your students decipher maths word problems with a set of printable maths keyword sign free printables.
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2 Digit Subtraction - Flip It Card Game
Practise subtracting two-digit numbers with and without regrouping with a fun game of Subtraction Flip It!
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Fact Families (Addition and Subtraction) Interactive Activity
Use this fact family houses resource to teach and practise addition and subtraction fact families with your students.
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Multi-Digit Subtraction - Interactive Claw Machine
Review knowledge of 3-and-4-digit subtraction with an exciting interactive claw machine game!
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Rainbow Number Facts Board Game
A fun, hands-on board game to consolidate students' understanding of the 'Friends of 10'.
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10 More, 10 Less Differentiated Mazes
Delight your students with this maze challenge, to practise calculating 10 more or 10 less than a value within 120.
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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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Subtraction Bingo – Numbers 0–60
32 different bingo cards using subtraction and numbers from 0-60.
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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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Subtraction within 20 - Number Bond Worksheet
Practise subtraction strategies, including number bonds and picture models, with a printable subtraction worksheet.
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Subtraction Mental Computation Flashcards
Build up your students' mental maths skills with a set of 36 subtraction flashcards using one- and two-digit numbers.
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Subtraction Strategies - Anchor Charts
Remind your students of the many subtraction strategies with a printable subtraction anchor chart display.
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Bump! – Subtraction to 10 Maths Game
Practise subtraction facts to 10 with a fun maths game.
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Fact Family Maths Blast Off - Addition and Subtraction
Demonstrate an understanding of addition and subtraction fact families with a fun cut and sort activity.
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Addition and Subtraction with Decimals – Task Cards
Practise adding and subtracting multi-digit decimals with this set of 16 task cards.
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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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Colouring by Numbers - Operations
Colouring pages to be used when working with operations.
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Subtraction by Regrouping Poster
Break down the steps to use regrouping to find a solution to a subtraction problem with a printable subtraction anchor chart.
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Lady Beetle Adding Activity
A fun and simple adding activity to consolidate simple addition.
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Ten Frame Printable Templates
Use these printable ten frames in various math lessons to reinforce number sense and other essential skills.
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Maths Symbols Posters with Vocabulary
A set of posters depicting the vocabulary related to each mathematical operation.