New
New
Year 1

Interpret and represent subtraction stories

I can interpret and represent subtraction stories that involve decreasing an amount using the ‘First, then, now’ structure.

New
New
Year 1

Interpret and represent subtraction stories

I can interpret and represent subtraction stories that involve decreasing an amount using the ‘First, then, now’ structure.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. In a ‘First, then, now’ subtraction story, the number at the start of the story is decreased by subtracting a part.
  2. When using subtraction to decrease an amount, the number that is decreased must always be represented first.
  3. This can be represented with practical equipment and as a bar model or a number line.
  4. We can write an equation to match these representations.

Keywords

  • First - Before anything else.

  • Then - After something in time.

  • Now - At the present time.

  • Decrease - To make something smaller in size or quantity.

Common misconception

The change in amount during the 'then' part of the story may be hard to identify.

Draw attention to explicitly to the change, talking about it as a decrease.

Draw attention to how the reduction structure of subtraction is different to partitioning. Use 'take away' interchangeably with 'subtract' here to help highlight that the subtrahend is physically taken away rather than just 'partitioned' from the difference.
Teacher tip

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
Alex writes an equation to match this story. 7 - 2 = 5 What does the 5 represent?
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: The amount left at the end of the story.
The amount at the start of the story.
The amount subtracted
Q2.
Which story could match the picture?
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: First, there were 5 pencils. Then, I took 2 pencils. Now, there are 3 pencils.
First, there were 3 pencils. Then, I put in 2 pencils. Now, there are 5 pencils.
First, there were 5 pencils. Then, I took 3 pencils. Now, there are 2 pencils.
Q3.
Which set of counters would represent this story? First, there were 8 pounds in my pocket. Then, I spent 3 pounds. Now, there are 5 pounds in my pocket.
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
Q4.
Which equation matches the picture?
An image in a quiz
5 + 1 = 6
6 - 5 = 1
Correct answer: 6 - 1 = 5
Q5.
Which equation matches the story? First, there were 8 books on a shelf. Then, 2 books were taken off. Now, there are 6 books on the shelf.
8 - 6 = 2
8 = 2 + 6
Correct answer: 8 - 2 = 6
Q6.
Write an equation to match the story. First, there were 10 pebbles in my bucket. Then, I dropped 2 pebbles. Now, there are 8 pebbles in my bucket.
Correct Answer: 10-2=8, 10 - 2 = 8

6 Questions

Q1.
Which picture could represent this story? First, there were 7 cats on the wall. Then, 3 cats jumped off the wall. Now, there are 4 cats on the wall.
Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
Q2.
Which equation would represent this story?
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: 8 - 3 = 5
8 - 5 = 3
5 - 3 = 2
Q3.
What is the subtrahend in this problem?
An image in a quiz
5
Correct answer: 4
0
Q4.
Which 'First, then, now' story represents this bar model?
An image in a quiz
First, there were 9 cars. Then, 1 car left. Now, there are 8 cars.
Correct answer: First, there were 5 cars, Then, 1 car left. Now, there are 4 cars.
First, there were 4 cars. Then, 1 car left. Now, there are 5 cars.
Q5.
Match the story to the equation it represents.
Correct Answer:2 - 2 = 0,First, there were 2 dogs. Then, 2 dogs left. Now, there are 0 dogs.

First, there were 2 dogs. Then, 2 dogs left. Now, there are 0 dogs.

Correct Answer:9 - 1 = 8,First, there were 9 cats. Then, 1 cat left. Now, there are 8 cats.

First, there were 9 cats. Then, 1 cat left. Now, there are 8 cats.

Correct Answer:6 - 3 = 3,First, there were 6 pigs. Then, 3 pigs left. Now, there are 3 pigs.

First, there were 6 pigs. Then, 3 pigs left. Now, there are 3 pigs.

Q6.
Which of these equations has been shown on this number line?
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: 8 - 6 = 2
8 - 2 = 6
6 - 2 = 8