Solve Subtraction Stories

Overview

In this 30-minute lesson, students solve subtraction story problems within 10 by modeling what is taken away and identifying how many remain. The lesson builds on prior work with counting, joining, and separating groups, using concrete objects, drawings, gestures, and equations.

Learning intentions

• Students will be able to solve subtraction story problems within 10.
• Students will be able to model the amount that is taken away.
• Students will be able to identify and explain the amount left.
• Students will be able to connect a story, model, and subtraction equation.

Success criteria

• I can show the starting number with objects or a drawing.
• I can show what is taken away.
• I can count how many are left within 10.
• I can tell or write a subtraction equation that matches the story.

Curriculum links

• Operations and Algebraic Thinking — solve addition and subtraction word problems using objects or drawings.
• Operations and Algebraic Thinking — add and subtract within 10.
• Operations and Algebraic Thinking — build fluency with addition and subtraction facts within 5.

Lesson structure (30 minutes)

1. 0–4 min · Hook and connect. Display a picture of 6 toy cars and tell the story: “There are 6 cars. Two cars drive away. How many cars are left?” Use the opening subtraction story slide and invite students to show their thinking with fingers, objects, or a quick drawing. Students act out the story with their hands and make an estimate before solving.

2. 4–9 min · Model the meaning of subtraction. Use 6 counters to represent the cars, physically move 2 away, and count the remaining 4. Record the matching equation, 6 − 2 = 4, while emphasizing “start with,” “take away,” and “left.” Students echo the gestures: hands together for the starting amount, move hands away for “take away,” and point to the remaining counters for “left.” Revisit the model-and-equation slides.

3. 9–14 min · Guided practice. Read two picture-supported stories aloud, such as “There are 5 ducks. One swims away. How many ducks are left?” and “There are 8 blocks. Three are put away. How many blocks remain?” Provide each student with counters or linking cubes. Students build the starting number, remove the amount taken away, count what remains, and share an oral equation with a partner.

4. 14–23 min · Partner problem solving. Pair students strategically and distribute the subtraction stories worksheet. Read each problem aloud, point to the pictures, and model how to use the equation frame without solving it for students. Partners solve three or four one-step stories using objects, drawings, or both. One partner models and explains; the other checks by recounting the remaining objects, then students switch roles. Pause midway for a quick check: “What number did you start with? What number was taken away? What number was left?”

5. 23–27 min · Share and compare strategies. Select two students to show different representations for the same problem, such as counters and a drawing. Use the strategy discussion slides to prompt: “How do you know your answer is the amount left?” and “What part of the story does each number represent?” Students explain using the frame, “I started with __, took away __, and __ were left.”

6. 27–30 min · Exit check and close. Present the story: “There are 7 apples. Three apples are eaten. How many apples are left?” Students complete a quick response on the final section of the subtraction stories worksheet, drawing or building the model and recording an equation if ready. Invite students to state the answer orally before closing with the final success-criteria slide.

Resources

• the subtraction story teaching deck
• the subtraction stories worksheet
• Connecting cubes or counters, at least 10 per student
• Small mats or workspaces for modeling
• Pencils, crayons, and erasers
• Optional toy cars, blocks, ducks, or apple pictures
• Whiteboard and marker
• Individual number cards from 0–10

Assessment

• During modeling, check whether students can identify the starting amount, the amount taken away, and the amount left.
• During partner work, listen for accurate use of “start with,” “take away,” and “left,” and check that the model matches the story and equation.
• Use the exit check to identify whether each student can solve within 10 independently, with a model, or with adult prompting.

Differentiation

• Support: Use concrete counters, a five- or ten-frame, picture-supported stories, gesture cues, and one-step problems with numbers within 5. Reduce the number of worksheet problems and provide hand-over-hand modeling only when necessary.
• Dyslexia-friendly options: Read every problem aloud, avoid requiring students to decode the text independently, use large clear print and uncluttered pages, include pictures, provide an equation frame such as “__ − __ = __,” and accept oral, drawn, or built responses.
• Language and communication: Preteach “start with,” “take away,” and “left.” Offer the sentence frame, “I had __. I took away __. __ are left,” and allow students to point, gesture, use AAC, or respond with a partner.
• Mixed-grade grouping: Pair students by complementary strengths. Older or more independent students may explain their model or record an equation, while younger students focus on acting out and counting the story.

Extension

• Students solve missing-part stories, such as “There were 8 balloons. Some popped. Four are left. How many popped?” They may use counters, a drawing, and an equation with a missing number: 8 − __ = 4.
• Invite advanced learners to create a subtraction story for a partner using numbers within 10 and explain how the model, story, and equation match.