Make Subtracting on a Number Line Easy with the Jump Strategy

If you’re working on subtraction with regrouping and your students are struggling, we can help you teach them the “Jump” strategy with a handy pack of differentiated worksheets. To get started, here’s some information on the jump strategy for subtraction.

Using Jumps to Hop Through Number Line Subtraction

The jump strategy can help subtract two-digit numbers on a number line because it helps students break down the problem into smaller, more manageable steps.

When using a number line to subtract two-digit numbers, students can start at the larger number and “jump back” to the smaller number. However, this can be daunting if the numbers are far apart on the number line. Students can use the jump strategy to find a more manageable “jump” distance to make the subtraction process easier to visualise on the number line.

This resource is differentiated into three levels, marked with stars. Each version is modified as follows:

★ – This version provides the struggling student with a fully guided learning experience. Each problem has the jumps already in place and provides visual guidance for each problem. This version does NOT include subtraction with regrouping.

★★ This version is visually similar to the first version, except fewer problems are fully guided. This version includes a mixture of problems that may or may not contain subtraction with regrouping.

★★★ This version is designed for your strongest maths students. All problems include regrouping, and additional critical thinking and reasoning problems have been added to the backside. 

Download and Print Your Subtraction Worksheets

You’re just a click away from getting your new resources! Use the dropdown arrow on the Download button to select the Editable Google Slides resource file or the quick-print PDF version.

Lorin Davies, a teacher in Texas and Teach Starter collaborator contributed to this resource.