easy way to show negative and positive rules

Easy way to show negative and positive rules plus#

The drink was 5 degrees and is now 6 degrees. If the ice cube is cooling the drink by 1 degree, then removing it will warm up the drink by 1 degree. If the ice cube is removed, the temperature will increase. Here is a drink which contains an ice cube. Removing a negative number can make the value of the number go up. Removing an ice cube can make the temperature go up. To understand why subtracting a negative number results in an addition, we can consider the negative number as an ice cube. It can be helpful to circle any double negatives and write an addition sign above.Ĩ – – 3 can be written as 8 + 3, which equals 11. Here is another example of subtracting a negative number. If two negative signs are next to each other, we can replace them with a positive sign. Ignoring the negative signs, we have 10 and 4. To subtract a negative number from another number, ignore any negative signs and add the numbers together.įor example, here is 10 – – 4. The ‘- +’ is replaced with a subtraction.

Easy way to show negative and positive rules plus#

We don’t normally write the plus sign in front of the 5 because we assume a number is positive unless told otherwise.Ĩ – 5 = 3 and so 8 – + 5 is also equal to 3. We can write 8 – 5 as 8 – + 5 or even as 8 – (+ 5). The 5 can be written as positive 5 or + 5.

If there is a positive and negative sign together, the result is a subtraction. It does not matter which order the positive and negative signs are written. The temperature goes down by 3 to get to 4. Adding three ice cubes can be shown with the sum 7 + – 3.

If instead of adding 1 ice cube, we add 3, then the temperature will drop by 3 instead of 1.Įach ice cube lowers the temperature by 1. However, not writing the bracket can make it easier to see the ‘+ -‘ combination and more easily replace it with a ‘-‘. Writing the bracket can make it easier for some people to visualise the negative number in this ice cube analogy and also to show that the negative sign belongs to the 1. It does not matter if a negative number is written in brackets or not. We can write 7 + – 1 = 6 or we can write the negative number in brackets as 7 + (-1) = 6. We will think of our negative number (-1) as an ice cube.Īdding an ice cube makes the drink colder and so, the temperature goes down.ħ – 1 = 6 and so, adding the ice cube resulted in a subtraction. By adding a negative, the value of the number drops. By adding an ice cube, the temperature drops. To understand why adding a negative number is the same as a subtraction, we can consider negative numbers as ice cubes. Replace the ‘+ -‘ in a sum with a single ‘-‘ sign. We have a positive number add a negative number. To add a negative number, simply ignore the negative sign and subtract it from the other number instead of adding it.įor example, here is 15 + – 7. There is no need to write two plus signs in this sum. The final case shows two positive signs being replaced with one.įor example, 6 + + 3 is the same as 6 + 3, which equals 9. Two negative signs are replaced with a single addition.Ģ – – 5 is the same as 2 + 5, which equals 7. The two signs ‘-‘ are the same, so we will be performing an addition. Here is an example of subtracting a negative number. In these examples, the combination of ‘+ -‘ or ‘- +’ were replaced with a single subtraction. These rules are used when there are two signs next to each other in an equation.įor example, 10 + – 4 can be written as 10 – 4, which equals 6.ġ7 – + 6 can be written as 17 – 6, which equals 11. There are four rules for adding and subtracting negative numbers, which are: In the case of ‘-‘, the first negative sign changes the negative sign it is next to into a ‘+’. A negative sign will change the sign next to it to have the opposite effect. We can think of the negative sign as having an opposite effect. Here is a guide to the rules for adding and subtracting directed numbers. If there is a positive and negative sign in any order, then perform a subtraction. If there are two negative signs or two postive signs, then perform an addition. The rule for adding and subtracting negative numbers is to add the numbers if the signs are the same and to subtract the numbers if the signs are different. Rules for Adding and Subtracting Negative Numbers