Integers on a number line

On a number line, 0 sits in the middle, negative integers go left and positive integers go right. A quiz for kids, parent help below.

🧒 Kids: find the dot!

Start at 0. Count the steps to the dot. Left of 0? Put a minus sign in front. Then try the quiz!

▶ Quiz 🔢 More practice

−6−5−4−3−2−10123456?

💡 Trick: The dot is 4 steps left of 0, so it is −4. Right of 0 means positive!

More integers: What are integers · Opposite numbers · Absolute value · Comparing integers · Integers on a number line · Zero pairs

For parents and teachers ↓

This part is for grown-ups: the key idea, pictures to draw, what to say, common mistakes, questions with answers and a free worksheet.

The trick: start at 0 and count

Always start counting from 0, not from the end of the line. Count the steps to the point, then decide the sign: left is negative, right is positive. Check the scale first, because each mark may stand for 2, 5 or 10.

Patterns to spot

Key words

Why it matters: The number line is the picture behind every integer rule. Children who can read and plot integers quickly can add and subtract by jumping, find distances and read the axes of a coordinate plane.

See it: pictures to draw with your child

Draw these on paper or a whiteboard. A quick sketch makes the idea concrete before any rules.

−10−8−6−4−20246810ABC
A is −9, B is −4 and C is 7. Count from 0 each time.
−50−40−30−20−1001020304050−3020
Here each labelled mark is 10. The dots are at −30 and 20.
−10−50510−8°C−10−505105°C
A thermometer is a vertical number line: up is positive, down is negative.

What your child already knows

Children have used number lines for counting, adding and fractions since early grades. The new part is the left side of 0. Every skill they know still works there, with a minus sign.

In real life: Thermometers, rulers on a lift wall, timelines (BC and AD) and depth gauges are all number lines. Ask your child to find 0 on each before reading anything else.

Vertical number lines

A number line can stand up too. On a thermometer or a height chart, up is positive and down is negative.

Lift buttons work the same way. The ground floor is 0, floors above are positive, and car park floors below are negative.

Vertical lines get children ready for the coordinate plane. There, the y-axis is a vertical number line and the x-axis is a horizontal one.

Worked examples

Example 1: Read a point

  1. A dot is 6 marks to the left of 0, and each mark is 1.
  2. It is at −6.

Example 2: Read a scaled line

  1. On a line labelled in 5s, a dot is 3 marks right of 0. 3 × 5 = 15, so it is at 15.

Example 3: Plot points

  1. Plot −7, 0 and 3.
  2. Start at 0 each time: 7 steps left, no steps, then 3 steps right.

Common mistakes

Counting from the endStarts counting from the left end of the line.Fix: always start at 0 and count towards the dot.
Ignoring the scaleReads every mark as 1 on a line that counts in 5s.Fix: read two labels first to find the size of one step.
Counting the 0 markSays the dot 3 marks left is −4.Fix: count the jumps between marks, not the marks themselves.

What to say to your child

A short script for your first session. Pause after each line and let your child answer.

  1. “Where is 0 on this line?”
  2. “Count the jumps from 0 to the dot.” (4.)
  3. “Is the dot left or right of 0?” (Left.)
  4. “So what number is it?” (−4.)
  5. “Now put your finger on 3. Which way did you go?” (Right.)

Questions to try (answers below)

Ask these out loud or write them down. The last one is a stretch.

  1. 5 steps left of 0
  2. Halfway between −4 and 4
  3. 2 more than −6
  4. 3 less than 1
  5. Each mark is 10. A dot is 4 marks left of 0.
  6. Integer between −8 and −6
  7. Thermometer bar 6 marks below 0, each mark 1°C
  8. Floor 2 below ground
  9. Stretch: what is halfway between −10 and 2?
Show the answers
  1. −5
  2. 0
  3. −4
  4. −2
  5. −40
  6. −7
  7. −6°C
  8. −2
  9. −4

Games to play at home

Stair line

Call the middle stair 0. Walk up and down saying the integers.

Tape line

Make a floor number line with tape from −10 to 10 and play “jump to −7”.

Thermometer read

Draw a thermometer, colour a level and ask for the temperature.

A 5-day plan for integers on a number line

Ten minutes a day is enough. Short, regular practice works far better than one long session.

By grade

Grade 6 (Common Core 6.NS.C.6 and 6.NS.C.6c) plots and finds integers and other rational numbers on horizontal and vertical number lines. Grade 7 uses the number line to add and subtract integers. In India, number lines with integers come in class 6.

More for each grade: Grade 6 math and the CBSE class 6 maths guide.

What comes next

Next, learn zero pairs to start adding integers. Plot your own numbers on the integer number line.

Worksheet and more practice

Print a free worksheet with an answer key, or keep practicing online with integer practice.

Printable PDFs: comparing integers · absolute value · adding and subtracting integers · make a fresh integers test

← Comparing integersZero pairs →

More: integers for kids · integer calculator · integer number line · integer practice · multiplying integers · ratios for kids

Last reviewed

Questions parents ask

How do you put integers on a number line?

Put 0 in the middle. Count steps right for positive integers and left for negative ones.

Where are negative numbers on a number line?

To the left of 0 on a horizontal line, or below 0 on a vertical line.

How do you read a number line with a scale?

Read two labels to find the size of each step, then count steps from 0.

Is a thermometer a number line?

Yes. It is a vertical number line with positive temperatures up and negative ones down.

What grade learns integers on a number line?

Grade 6 under Common Core 6.NS.C.6c. In India, class 6.