Imagine you have 3 apples, and you give 2 apples to your friends.
How many apples do you have left?
To find the answer, you use subtraction!
3 - 2 = ?
Subtraction is when you take one number away from another.
Subtraction uses a minus (-) symbol.
3 - 2 = 1
Subtraction is the opposite of addition.
If you know 2 + 1 = 3, you also know that 3 - 2 = 1.
You can solve easy subtraction problems on your fingers.
Let's learn how by solving 5 - 3 = ?
Look at the first number, 5. Start by raising that many fingers.
Then take away 3 fingers.
How many fingers are left? 2
So 5 - 3 = 2! 🎉 Congratulations, you just did subtraction.
7 - 3 = ?
Subtraction using fingers is pretty slow.
Let's try to solve this subtraction using a drawing.
Look at the first number, 7. Start by drawing that many circles on a piece of paper:
Then cross out 3 of them:
How many circles are left? 4
So using diagrams, we figured out that:
7 - 3 = 4 ✅
Each part of a subtraction equation has a name, or term.
The first number is called the minuend.
The subtrahend is the number after a minus symbol.
The answer to a subtraction problem is called the difference.
Tip for remembering:
Knowing these terms makes it easier for us to learn more about subtraction.
A great way to think about subtraction is it's the opposite of addition.
When you see:
5 - 2 = ?
... just think, "What number plus 2 equals 5?"
Yes! 3 + 2 equals 5! So, 5 - 2 = 3.
Tip: 2 and 3 are parts of the same whole, 5.
When you subtract by 1, it's like counting down by 1.
7 - 1 = 6
6 - 1 = 5
5 - 1 = 4
When you subtract a number from itself, the answer is always zero. Take a look:
7 - 7 = 0
4 - 4 = 0
When subtracting, the order of the numbers matters.
For example, 3 - 2 is not the same as 2 - 3.
Great job learning about subtraction.
Now, complete the practice.