Positive, negative numbers and zero are a fundamental topic in algebra, it is very easy to understand it by drawing a number line in which zero is located in the middle.
- Zero is our reference point.
- The positive numbers are the same numbers we use to this day and are located to the right of zero. Now that we are beginning to study the subject of positive and negative numbers, we will see a sign before the positive ones, the plus sign (+), to make it clear that it is a positive number, but, later, after we understand the subject well, we will suppress it.
- Negative numbers are those that are located on the left side of zero and have a minus sign (-). Unlike positive numbers, the minus sign will always appear next to negative numbers to indicate that they are actually negative numbers.
We will illustrate this on the number line:
