wunder beta🌡️ Positive and Negative Numbers
Numbers below zero show up everywhere - freezing temperatures, basement floors, bank balances. Learn to place negatives on a number line and add across zero.
What you’ll learn
- Below ZeroRepresent positive and negative numbers on a number line and interpret what zero means in context.Negative numbers describe quantities in the opposite direction from positives: temperatures below freezing, floors below ground, money owed. On the number line, positives go right and negatives go left, with zero as the turning point. Further left means smaller, so -8 is colder than -3.
- Adding Across ZeroAdd a positive or negative number to any integer using number-line reasoning.Adding a positive hops right and adding a negative hops left. From -5, a rise of 8 crosses zero to reach 3 (-5 + 8 = 3). From 4, adding -7 slides left to -3. Picturing the direction of the hop makes adding across zero simple.
Questions this course answers
Which temperature is the COLDEST?
-8 is furthest left on the number line, so it's coldest.
On a number line, where do negative numbers sit?
Negatives are left of zero; positives are right.
For a building's floors, what does floor 0 (zero) usually mean?
Zero is the starting point - ground level.
What is 4 + (-7)?
Adding a negative hops left: 4 + (-7) = -3.
Adding a negative number to any integer makes you...
Adding a negative always moves you left, so the result is smaller.
Grounded in trusted sources
- Khan Academy
- BBC Bitesize - Maths
- NRICH - University of Cambridge
- Math is Fun
Every Wunder lesson is built from real, reputable sources — never invented.
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