Calculating change from £5 and £10 notes using subtraction or counting up methods.
Where your child meets this in real life: Shopping transactions, checking you've received correct change
SEAGReady breaks calculate change into 2 steps, taught in order so each skill builds on the last.
Calculate change from £5 or £10 when buying one item
Calculate change after buying multiple items by finding total cost first
Three free sample questions from our calculate change course. Every question comes with a full explanation, and hints that guide without giving the answer away.
Freya buys the pen shown and pays with the note shown. How much change does she get?
Reece buys crisps for £0.95 and a chocolate bar for £1.25 at the school tuck shop. He pays with a £5 note. How much change does he receive?
Jamie buys a wildlife book for £6.80. He pays with a £10 note. What change does he get?
This is the exact interactive worked example your child sees in SEAGReady. Step through it and watch the method build up.
Naomi buys a notebook at the school shop. It costs £3.65. She pays with a £5 note.
How much change does Naomi get?
£5.00 − £3.65
Change is the distance from the cost to the amount paid
Step 1 of 4
Naomi buys a notebook at the school shop. It costs £3.65. She pays with a £5 note.
How much change does Naomi get?
Naomi gets £1.35 change.
The key insight: Change is the distance from the cost to the amount paid; counting through the next pound keeps the pence clear.
Common mix-up: £3.65 − £5.00 = can't do it. Always subtract the cost FROM the payment, not the other way round.
These are the misconceptions we see most often in calculate change, including the ones our practice questions are specifically designed to catch.
Struggling with calculate change? The real gap is often in one of these earlier topics.
SEAGReady finds the exact step where your child gets stuck, teaches it with worked examples like the one above, and brings it back for review so it sticks.
Free to start · no card needed