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What "count backs" means to me is this: a method of learning subtraction by counting backwards from the first number in the problem to get to the answer.  For example, 11 minus 3 would be
 
11 take away 1 is 10
10 take away 1 is 9
9 take away 1 is 8
 
It's the verbal equivalent of "counting on your fingers" for arithmetic.
 
Count-backs aren't meant to be a long-term technique for doing subtraction.  They are meant only to teach the concept of subtraction - what it means to subtract one number from another.
 
Here's a simple worksheet for practicing count-backs on fairly small numbers:
 
http://tinyurl.com/countbacks-worksheet

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