Free Grade 3 Negative Numbers Lesson Plans
Free Grade 3 lesson plans for Negative Numbers: 12 real questions with a full answer key and worked solutions. Integers include negative numbers. On a number line, adding moves right and subtracting moves left. Subtracting a negative is the same as adding.
Free
Core
15 min
24
Learning objectives
Every objective is checkable, and each one maps to an activity and an assessment.
- UnderstandExplain negative numbers
Explain negative numbers accurately in a familiar context.
Assessed by: Exit ticket of four short items
- ApplyCalculate negative numbers
Calculate negative numbers accurately in a familiar context.
Assessed by: Exit ticket of four short items
- AnalyseCompare negative numbers
Compare negative numbers accurately in a familiar context.
Assessed by: Exit ticket of four short items
- EvaluateJustify negative numbers
Justify negative numbers accurately in a familiar context.
Assessed by: Exit ticket of four short items
Prerequisites
Close these gaps first — each has its own free lesson, worksheet and quiz.
How Negative Numbers works
Integers include negative numbers. On a number line, adding moves right and subtracting moves left. Subtracting a negative is the same as adding.
12 practice questions
Easy to hard, 24 marks in total. Try them first, then open the answers.
- 1.-5 + (-8) = ?[1]
- 2.-2 + 1 = ?[1]
- 3.5 + 7 = ?[1]
- 4.3 + 10 = ?[1]
- 5.-5 + 16 = ?[2]
- 6.1 × 11 = ?[2]
- 7.18 × 17 = ?[2]
- 8.-1 + (-8) = ?[2]
- 9.14 × (-17) = ?[3]
- 10.-25 − (-6) = ?[3]
- 11.-16 × (-14) = ?[3]
- 12.7 × 8 = ?[3]
Show answers and working
1. -13
Start at -5 on a number line. Move 8 left. You land on -13.
2. -1
Start at -2 on a number line. Move 1 right. You land on -1.
3. 12
Start at 5 on a number line. Move 7 right. You land on 12.
4. 13
Start at 3 on a number line. Move 10 right. You land on 13.
5. 11
Start at -5 on a number line. Move 16 right. You land on 11.
6. 11
Multiply the sizes: 1 × 11 = 11. Same signs give positive, different signs give negative. Answer: 11
7. 306
Multiply the sizes: 18 × 17 = 306. Same signs give positive, different signs give negative. Answer: 306
8. -9
Start at -1 on a number line. Move 8 left. You land on -9.
9. -238
Multiply the sizes: 14 × 17 = 238. Same signs give positive, different signs give negative. Answer: -238
10. -19
Subtracting (-6) is the same as adding 6. -25 + 6 = -19
11. 224
Multiply the sizes: 16 × 14 = 224. Same signs give positive, different signs give negative. Answer: 224
12. 56
Multiply the sizes: 7 × 8 = 56. Same signs give positive, different signs give negative. Answer: 56
Worked examples
-8 + (-5) = ?
- Start at -8 on a number line.
- Move 5 left.
- You land on -13.
- Answer: -13
-5 − 3 = ?
- Subtracting 3 is the same as adding -3.
- -5 + (-3) = -8
- Answer: -8
-19 + 29 = ?
- Start at -19 on a number line.
- Move 29 right.
- You land on 10.
- Answer: 10
Interactive practice
Free, no account required — answer on screen or print it.
Common mistakes
What learners typically get wrong, and how to fix it.
Thinks −8 is bigger than −3.
Correction: Further left on the number line means smaller.
Treats − (−4) as −4.
Correction: Two minus signs together become a plus.
Teacher tips
- · Use a vertical number line like a thermometer.
Parent tips
- · Compare winter temperatures from the weather forecast.
Real-life applications
- · Temperatures below zero, bank balances, floors below ground.
Assessment objectives
How mastery is evidenced, and which standards it maps to.
Every free resource for Negative Numbers
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Learn — Meet the idea.
Practice — Build fluency.
Revise — Keep it in memory.
Assess — Prove mastery.
Apply — Use it in context.
Teach — Deliver it to a class.
Frequently asked
- Is this Grade 3 Negative Numbers lesson plan really free?
- Yes. Every lesson plans on FreeMathWorksheet is free to use, print and share — no account, no paywall and no watermark.
- What should a learner already know before this?
- Start with Number Formation. Each one has its own free lesson, worksheet and quiz.
- How is the lesson plan sequenced?
- Recognition first, then understanding, application, reasoning and finally mastery — the same ladder used across every free resource on the platform.
- What comes next after Negative Numbers?
- Move on to Integer Number Line, Adding Integers, Subtracting Integers, Multiplying Integers, which build directly on this idea.
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