Max Maths, Year 6, Work Book, Mental multiplication

The 'Max Maths, Year 6, Work Book' offers a comprehensive practice on mental multiplication techniques for students. In Practice 7, the focus is on doubling and halving numbers, as well as multiplying by multiples of 10. The first section asks students to double various numbers, reinforcing the concept that doubling is equivalent to multiplying by two. For example, to double 13, one simply calculates 13 times 2, and similarly for the other pairs of numbers listed. This exercise is designed to strengthen mental arithmetic skills and understanding of multiplication as repeated addition.

The second section shifts to halving numbers, which is the same as dividing by two. Students are asked to find half of given numbers, such as 26 and 36, by performing mental division. This task helps to solidify the relationship between multiplication and division as inverse operations. The third section challenges students to multiply numbers by 4 and 5 mentally, further developing their ability to quickly calculate multiples. Lastly, students practice multiplying numbers by 20 using a two-step process: first doubling the number and then multiplying by 10, which is a strategic approach to simplify mental calculations and enhance number sense.