Grade 6 FAST Mathematics Practice Test

Adding and subtracting integers uses the same idea you already know from whole numbers, just with signs that show direction. When you add two integers, look at their signs. If both are the same sign, add their absolute values and keep that sign. If they have different signs, subtract the smaller absolute value from the larger and keep the sign of the number with the larger magnitude. This fits because adding a negative is like moving in the opposite direction, and subtracting a negative is like moving in the positive direction. For example, 5 plus a negative 3 equals 2, and negative 4 plus 7 equals 3. Subtraction can be seen as adding the opposite: 6 minus 2 is the same as 6 plus negative 2, which is 4, and 6 minus negative 2 becomes 6 plus 2, which is 8. This approach directly extends what you know about whole-number operations and doesn’t involve fractions or prime-factor ideas, which aren’t part of adding or subtracting integers.