Repeated Subtraction
Repeated Subtraction:
Used as a division strategy. The child will repeatedly subtract the divisor until they reach zero. The child must keep track on the amount of times they subtracted.
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Important Information
Repeated subtraction is often a strategy used when students are just developing multiplicative reasoning.
This strategy can be a stepping stone towards using partial quotients.
What students might do:
What students might say: "I kept subtracting 4 until I got to zero. I then counted up how many times I subtracted 4 to get my answer."
Strategies to Support Students Learning:
Once students are comfortable with repeated subtraction, partial quotients can be introduced
Encourage students to see larger numbers that may be subtracted to get to zero
Encourage students to use friendly numbers such as 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 when subtracting