How to Learn Math Without Using Your Fingers to Count

An example of a large number line is a football field.

Counting on fingers while adding or subtracting is a common habit among youth. Curb this practice by instructing students how to make and use a number line. Adaptable to any set of digits, a number line allows students to visualize math problems easily. Using a number line also decreases the chance for mistakes that commonly occur using the finger-counting method. Number lines also make it possible to use larger numbers. For example, if the problem is 567-34, use the number 567 in the middle.

Things You'll Need

• Ruler

Instructions

Number line

1. Set the ruler horizontally on a piece of paper. Draw a line over the top edge of the ruler.

2. Draw a line in the middle of the line and write "0." Make horizontal hash marks -- about a centimeter apart -- down both sides of the line.

3. Write a number at the bottom of each hash mark. On the right from the zero, start with 1 and continue until you run out of hash marks. On the left, start with -1 and continue with negative numbers until you run out of hash marks.

4. Use the number line to do math problems. For example, if the problem is 23-7, you would place your pencil on 23 on the number line and count back 7 hash marks.

Tips & Warnings

• For all numbers, except 0, count backwards on the left side of the number line.

References

• Enchanted Learning: Number Lines
• Learning Wave: Number Line
• Think Quest: Graphing on Number Lines

Resources

• Internet for Classrooms: Using Excel to Make A Number Line