SubtractionGrade 2

2.MD.6 — Subtraction on a Number Line

Practice subtracting whole numbers within 100 by hopping back on a number line diagram to find the difference between two numbers accurately.

CCSSAligned to Common Core 2.MD.6: Represent whole numbers as lengths on a number line, and represent sums and differences within 100 on a number line diagram.
20 problemsAnswer key included

Use the number line to find each difference, then write the answer.

  1. 1.10 - 3 =
  2. 2.15 - 5 =
  3. 3.20 - 8 =
  4. 4.18 - 9 =
  5. 5.25 - 7 =
  6. 6.30 - 12 =
  7. 7.40 - 15 =
  8. 8.35 - 16 =
  9. 9.50 - 20 =
  10. 10.45 - 18 =
  11. 11.60 - 25 =
  12. 12.55 - 27 =
  13. 13.70 - 30 =
  14. 14.65 - 38 =
  15. 15.80 - 45 =
  16. 16.75 - 49 =
  17. 17.90 - 50 =
  18. 18.85 - 56 =
  19. 19.100 - 63 =
  20. 20.98 - 74 =

What this worksheet covers

Twenty subtraction problems fill the page, and the complete key sits behind them in the same PDF. Numbers reach 100. The whole sheet sits inside Common Core 2.MD.6, in the grade 2 Measurement & Data strand.

Skills practiced

Grade 2 sits in the stretch of the subtraction progression concerned with subtraction facts within 20 and the three meanings of subtraction. Working the page asks a student to recall the subtraction facts quickly and accurately, without counting up to them. Speed matters less than a clean method that survives a harder problem.

How to use this worksheet

Grade 2 attention runs short, so split these twenty problems over two or three short sittings rather than pushing through in one. Keep a number line or a ten-frame within reach — reaching for it is a strategy, not a failure. Keep the key face down until the page is finished, then go through the misses together rather than only totalling the score.

One mistake to watch for

Comparison problems are solved with addition.

Nothing is being taken away in the story, so subtraction does not seem to apply.

Draw two bars of different lengths and mark the gap. The question is asking about the gap, and the gap is a difference.

The full guide to teaching subtractionTeaching subtraction from take-away to signed numbers: the grade 1–8 progression, borrowing across zeros, and the six error patterns that stall students.

Related worksheets

More grade 2 subtraction

More practice at the same level, for when one page has not made the skill automatic.

A step either side

Subtraction either side of grade 2, for stepping the difficulty rather than repeating it.

Free to download, free to print, and free to photocopy for a whole class — this subtraction sheet and its key are one PDF, aimed at subtraction facts within 20 and the three meanings of subtraction.

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