Max Maths, Year 3, Learn together, Adding 2-digit numbers mentally (1)

The Max Maths programme for Year 3 includes a lesson on adding 2-digit numbers mentally, which is an essential skill for young learners to develop. The method taught involves breaking down each number into tens and ones to simplify the addition process. For instance, to find the sum of 53 and 25, students are encouraged to separate these numbers into their constituent parts. Fifty-three is divided into 50 (tens) and 3 (ones), while twenty-five is split into 20 (tens) and 5 (ones). This makes it easier to add the ones together and the tens together separately. By adding 50 and 20 first, students get 70, and then by adding the ones, 3 and 5, to get 8, they can combine these sums to reach the final answer of 78.

Another example provided in the lesson is the addition of 85 and 60. Again, the strategy is to regroup the numbers into tens and ones for easier mental computation. Eighty-five is broken down into 80 (tens) and 5 (ones), and sixty is already a multiple of ten. Students then add the tens, 80 and 60, to get 140, and finally add the ones, which in this case is just the 5 from eighty-five, to arrive at the total sum of 145. This method of regrouping and adding in parts helps students to perform mental arithmetic with greater confidence and speed, laying a strong foundation for more complex mathematical operations in the future.