Calculating with negative numbers

Year 7 bridging · Year 7 bridging · 7N-1 — KS3: use the four operations with negative numbers

Draft — awaiting teacher review

Builds on: Numbers to ten million (Year 6), Decimals on the number line; splitting 1 (Year 5)

Concept Anchor

Negative numbers are less than zero. On a number line, adding a positive number moves right; subtracting a positive number moves left. A negative times a positive gives a negative.

Worked example

$-3 + 7$

1.Start at −3.
2.Adding 7 means 7 steps to the right.
3.−3 → 0 is 3 steps; 4 more steps reaches 4.
4. $-3 + 7 = 4$ .

Guided Check

What is $2 - 5$ ?

III

Independent Diagnostic Practice

Q1Year 7 bridging7N-1 — Add to a negative number·Fluency·●○○Draft — awaiting teacher review

What is $-3 + 7$ ?

Q2Year 7 bridging7N-1 — Subtract from a negative number·Reasoning·●●○Draft — awaiting teacher review

What is $-5 - 3$ ?

Q3Year 7 bridging7N-1 — Difference across zero in context·Problem Solving·●●●Draft — awaiting teacher review

At midnight the temperature is $-6$ °C. By noon it is $4$ °C. By how many degrees has it risen?