Subtract from 10

Here’s a game to practise subtracting numbers from 10.

You need:

• A game board (download here)
• Counters for each person (we made some with pictures stuck on milk bottle tops)
• A dice or pile of digit cards 1 – 6

Take turns to:

1. Throw the dice;
2. Subtract the dice number from 10, find the answer on the board and place a counter on it.

If you cannot place a counter, do nothing. You cannot put a counter on a number that already has a counter on it.

When all the hexagons have been covered, the winner is the player who has placed more counters.

Use full sentences and correct mathematical language as you play the game.

I have thrown a 2.  10 subtract 2 is 8.

I have thrown a 2. 10 take away 2 equals 8.

Subtraction is not just take away. Learners find the concept of subtraction as difference between more difficult than take away, so play the game using the language of difference:

I have thrown a 2. The difference between 10 and 2 is 8.

Use bottle tops to illustrate this.

Also explore subtraction as counting back. Use jumps on a number line to show this.