SEAGReady
NumberP6 level20 questions in the full course

Column SubtractionSEAG Practice Questions

Subtracting numbers with 3 or more digits using the column method with borrowing (decomposition).

Where your child meets this in real life: Working out change, finding differences in distances, or calculating how much more is needed

What your child needs to know

SEAGReady breaks column subtraction into 3 steps, taught in order so each skill builds on the last.

  1. 1

    No Borrowing Required

    Subtract 3+ digit numbers using column method when each top digit is larger than the bottom digit

  2. 2

    Borrowing from Adjacent Column

    Subtract 3+ digit numbers when borrowing (decomposition) is needed from adjacent columns

  3. 3

    Borrowing Across Zeros

    Subtract when borrowing must cross one or more zeros (e.g., 1003 - 456)

Try these SEAG-style questions

Three free sample questions from our column subtraction course. Every question comes with a full explanation, and hints that guide without giving the answer away.

Question 1Confidence builder

Aaron has saved 986 trading cards. He gives 453 cards to his younger brother. How many cards does Aaron have left?

Answer choices for question 1
Question 2Confidence builder

A school has 532 exercise books. They give out 278 books to pupils. How many books are left?

Answer choices for question 2
Question 3Standard

A cinema sold 4000 tickets for a film festival. 2637 tickets were for Saturday shows. How many tickets were for other days?

A column layout aligns 4000 and 2637 by place value without showing the chain regrouping or the difference.
Answer choices for question 3

Try the lesson: No Borrowing Required

This is the exact interactive worked example your child sees in SEAGReady. Step through it and watch the method build up.

Noah has saved £875 for a new bicycle. He spends £342 on accessories.

How much money does Noah have left?

875 − 342

Set up the column subtraction
1

Write the larger number on top and align ones under ones, tens under tens and hundreds under hundreds

Step 1 of 4

Prefer to read? See every step written out

Noah has saved £875 for a new bicycle. He spends £342 on accessories.

How much money does Noah have left?

  1. 1

    Set up the column subtraction

    • Write the larger number on top and align ones under ones, tens under tens and hundreds under hundreds
  2. 2

    Subtract each column from right to left

    • Ones column: 5 − 2 = 35 − 2 = 3
    • Tens column: 7 − 4 = 37 − 4 = 3
    • Hundreds column: 8 − 3 = 58 − 3 = 5

Noah has £533 left.

The key insight: When the top digit is always bigger, just subtract column by column!

Common mix-up: Writing 875 − 342 with digits misaligned (e.g., 875 over 342 shifted). Each column must line up by place value or you subtract the wrong values.

Mistakes to watch for

These are the misconceptions we see most often in column subtraction, including the ones our practice questions are specifically designed to catch.

  • Subtracting smaller from larger regardless of position (e.g., 42-18=36)
  • Forgetting to reduce the borrowed-from column
  • Errors when borrowing across zeros (e.g., 1003 - 456)

Build these skills first

Struggling with column subtraction? The real gap is often in one of these earlier topics.

Subtract 2-Digit Numbers (With Borrow)Identify Place Value of a Digit

More number practice

Read & Write Whole NumbersCompare Two Whole NumbersOrder a Set of Whole NumbersAddition Facts to 20Subtraction Facts Within 20Add 2-Digit Numbers (No Carry)
20 questions on this topic alone

Master column subtraction and everything it unlocks

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.

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