HCPSS Worthwhile Math Task
Positive and Negative Events
Common Core Standard
6.NS.C.5. Understand that positive and negative numbers are used together to describe quantities
having opposite directions or values (e.g. temperature above/below zero, elevation above/below
sea level, credits/debits, positive/negative electric charge); use positive and negative numbers to
represent quantities in real-world contexts, explaining the meaning of 0 in each situation.
MP1: Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them.
MP2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively.
MP4: Model with mathematics.
The Task
Many events can be represented numerically with positive or negative values. Examples of some
of these events are temperature increases and decreases, elevation above and below sea level,
traveling up and down the stairs, depositing and withdrawing money, going up and down on and
elevator, etc. Your task is to write a story that focuses on one of the types of events listed above
or another of your choosing. Your story should include at least six events. Three of the events
should be a negative change and three of the events should be a positive change.
After your story is written, write 1-2 questions that someone should be able to answer after
reading your story on the bottom of the handout provided.
Facilitator Notes
1. Consider giving students example questions they could ask such as “What floor does the
character end up on at the end of the story?” or “How much money was spent in the
story?” (Look for evidence of MP2.)
2. Once a student has finished their story and written their questions, they should switch
stories and handouts. The handout will ask the reader to identify the events and represent
them as positive and negative values. (Look for evidence of MP1 and MP4.)
3. Generate a list of topics that students wrote about in their stories to show the variety of
choices.
Follow-Up Questions
Howard County Public Schools Office of Secondary Mathematics Curricular Projects has
licensed this product under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0
Unported License.
HCPSS Worthwhile Math Task
1. What types of events did you read about that you had not considered representing with
positive and negative numbers?
2. Are there any other events you can think that we did not list?
Solutions
Sample Answer:
Today is Molly’s birthday. When she woke up, her parents gave her a $30 gift card to her
favorite store. She immediately asked for them to take her there. On the way, her family stopped
for breakfast. The bill at breakfast was $25. Her mom paid for it. When they got to the store,
Molly found a few things to buy. Her bill was $33. She spent her $30 gift card and her dad paid
the other $3. When Molly got home from the store, she checked the mail and found a birthday
card from her aunt. Inside was $20 bill. Molly put the money in her piggy bank for a rainy day.
Event
Integer
Received $30 gift card
+ 30
Spent $25 at breakfast
- 25
Spent $30 gift card
- 30
Spent $3 of Dad’s money
-3
Received birthday card with $20
+ 20
Howard County Public Schools Office of Secondary Mathematics Curricular Projects has
licensed this product under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0
Unported License.
HCPSS Worthwhile Math Task
Positive and Negative Event Story Organizer
Event
Integer
Questions for your classmate to answer:
Howard County Public Schools Office of Secondary Mathematics Curricular Projects has
licensed this product under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0
Unported License.