Maryland Math 6.NOS.C.5
The Standard
Use understanding of rational numbers as positive and negative numbers 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 rational numbers to represent quantities in context and explain the meaning of 0 in each situation.
Maryland College and Career Ready Standards for Mathematics (2025) · APPLY AND EXTEND PREVIOUS UNDERSTANDING OF NUMBERS TO THE SYSTEM OF RATIONAL NUMBERS.
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students use positive and negative fractions or decimals to describe temperatures, elevations, and changes in money. They explain what zero means in each situation.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student writes −2.5°C for 2.5 degrees below zero and +2.5°C for 2.5 degrees above. They explain that 0°C is a temperature, not an absence of temperature. They write −$3.50 for a withdrawal and explain that $0 change means the balance stayed the same.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may call 0°C “no temperature” or think sea level means no elevation. They may use a negative number for a temperature above zero. Some confuse a withdrawal amount with the account balance after the withdrawal.
How to Assess It
- Exit ticket: A diver is 2.5 meters below sea level, and a pier deck is 2.5 meters above sea level. Write a signed number for each and explain what 0 meters means.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Tape a number line to the floor; students place elevation cards at +1.5, 0, and −1.5 meters and explain each position.
Ask partners: “Does 0°C mean no temperature? What does $0 mean for an account balance?” Have them write one answer for each.
Give pairs cards showing +$2.75 and −$2.75, plus deposit and withdrawal cards; have them match each amount to a transaction.
Show a winter weather forecast with temperatures crossing 0°C; students label each temperature on a thermometer and explain what 0°C marks.
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Related Standards
- 6.NOS.C.6.c
Recognize and locate opposite signs of rational numbers as indicating locations on opposite sides of 0 on the number line.
- 7.NOS.A.1.b
Model the addition of rational numbers as movement along a number line, where the direction and distance depend on the sign and magnitude of the addend. Show th...
- 6.NOS.C.6
Represent a rational number as a point on vertical or horizontal number lines. Represent points on a number line with negative numbers.
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