Integers Game with a Number Line
A number line and a jumping frog, against the clock. Sometimes you get a starting point and a signed operation and must tap where it lands; other times you see the start and landing and must guess which operation it was. On hard, some operations are written with a double sign (like "−(−6)") to practise the rule that subtracting a negative is adding.
Mathematics · Secondary
Instead of memorising "minus times minus is plus", students see the jump on the line and check where it actually lands — the mistake gets corrected by sight, not by formula.
Jumping (from operation to result) and guessing (from result to operation) are the two directions this gets tested in an exam — practising only one leaves the learning half-done.
The countdown and streaks turn integer arithmetic, which would be monotonous on paper, into something with tension and a score to beat.
"Starting at −3, jump "−(−5)". Since subtracting a negative is adding, the real jump is +5, landing on 2 — not −8, the typical mistake from not applying the sign rule."
Prefer to learn without screens? Try this analogue version:
Draw a line from −10 to 10 on the floor or a long sheet of paper, with a mark for each integer.
One player stands on a starting number (can be done physically, hopping mark to mark).
Another player calls out a signed operation, including some with a double sign ("subtract −4").
The first player jumps to the result and the group checks whether they landed in the right spot.
If you like Jump the Number Line, these activities work similar skills:
Review integers, absolute value, signed operations and rational numbers in quiz form.
Comparing real negative temperatures across cities is an everyday way to handle integers meaningfully.
A building with basement floors (negative) and a lift going up and down is another number line in disguise.
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