Missing part
You know the whole and one part. Find the other.
Missing-part subtraction asks "what goes with this part to make the whole?" It is the same number bond read a different way, and it is how children come to see subtraction and addition as one relationship rather than two operations. Typically ages five to seven.
Play this lesson with narration →A bar with a question mark
Subtraction finds the missing part.
The whole bar is ten. One part is six. What's the other part? We can subtract: ten minus six is four.
Same as a bond
Every number bond gives us two subtractions. Ten minus six is four. Ten minus four is six. Same family.
Try it
The whole is nine. One part is four. What's the other?
What parents should watch for
- Adding the two visible numbers instead of finding the gap.
- Not recognising that 10 − 6 and 6 + ? = 10 are the same question.
- Guessing at the missing part rather than counting up from it.
- Struggling when the unknown is in the first position (? − 4 = 6).
Land 32 · Number Bond Bay — 13 levels for ages 4–7 in the number sense strand.
Play Number Bond Bay in the Yaze Adventure Map — games built on this exact skill.
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