Video: Solving Word Problems by Subtracting Numbers up to 999

Video Transcript

A shop has 953 bottles of drink. 230 were sold. How many are left?

When we solve word problems, we always start by highlighting the key numbers and phrases. A shop had 953 bottles of drink. 230 are sold. We need to calculate how many bottles are left.

Now we can write the equation; 953 bottles, 230 are sold. Next we need to figure out which operation to use, plus or minus. The shop had 953 bottles and then sold some.

That’s correct! The operation we need to use is minus because 230 bottles were already sold. Once we’ve subtracted 230 bottles from the 953, that will tell us how many bottles are left.

Now we can calculate the answer using column subtraction, 953 minus 230. Starting in the ones column, three minus zero is three. Moving across to the 10s column, five minus three is two.

Finally, we’re moving to the 100s column: nine minus two is seven. 953 minus 230 equals 723. The shop had 953 bottles of drink. They sold 230, which means that 723 were left. We calculated our answer using column subtraction.