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Camille Ira B. Mendoza

reviewed by Jo-ann Caballes

Updated on December 19, 2024

Welcome to Brighterly, where we make math fun and easy to learn!

Today, we’re going to be covering a method of solving math problems that is fast and effective – mental math.

Mastering mental math allows you to solve math problems quickly and easily.

Here, we’ll cover mental math and mental arithmetic meaning, mental math examples, why it’s so important and how you can do it. We’ll also share fun math worksheets and practice test problems so you can improve your knowledge even further.

What is mental math?

Mental math is a method of working out math problems in your head, without using tools like calculators or a pen and paper. We cover the full mental math meaning below, including:

• What is mental math 2nd grade
• What is mental math 3rd grade 
• What is mental math 4th grade

Mental math definition

So, what does mental math mean? The definition of mental math is a skill that allows you to work out math problems and equations completely in your head. With mental math, you don’t need to use aids like pens and paper or calculators – you’ll simply do math in your head.

Kids will first start to be introduced to mental math in 2nd grade. As they go through 3rd and 4th grade and beyond, mental math will start to be more intuitive.

Why is mental math important?

Mental math is an important life skill that will help you with a range of day-to-day activities. If you’re out shopping, you can easily add up the total of your basket as you go, or calculate added sales tax so you know how much you’ll be paying at the till. 

Mental math also relies on a strong working memory, and in turn, helps to train your working memory. By continuously doing math in your head, you retain this ability instead of forgetting how to do it. 

It’s also helpful in school because you can work out math problems with a mental calculation much faster!

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How to do mental math?

Mental math is just solving math in head. In order to be able to do it, you’ll need to memorize basic math concepts like addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, as well as information on other concepts like fractions, decimals and geometry.

How to use mental math?

What is one skill that would help with a calculation? There are a few different methods you can use in math mental calculations, including:

• Rounding up or down – when quickly calculating things like how much your shopping will roughly cost, you can round individual prices up or down
• Working from left to right – if you have to add two 2-digit numbers together, it can be helpful to work left to right, i.e. adding the tens first, then the ones
• Use common math facts – there are some facts in math that are always true, like a number multiplied by 10 ends in 0, which can help you do mental math faster
• Breaking the problem down – by breaking complex equations into smaller parts in your head, you can solve them more easily

Solved math tasks: examples

Ready to put your mental math skills to the test? We’ve put together some solved math tasks that can be answered through mental math – try them out and check your answers to see how many you’ve got right.

Solved math task 1

You’re buying a sweater for $15 and you need to add a 4% sales tax to work out your final price. Solve this in your head.

Answer: 

One way of working this out via mental math is to first work out 1% of $15, which is 15 cents. Then, multiply that by 4 – 60 cents – and add it to your $15. $15 + 60 cents = $15.60.

Solved math task 2

You’re shopping for groceries and you have items with the following prices:

• $1.50
• $4.39
• $2.98
• $5.16

Using rounding to the nearest dollar, estimate how much your total will be.

Answer:

$1.50 rounds up to $2, $4.39 rounds down to $4, $2.98 rounds up to $3 and $5.16 rounds down to 5. $2 + $4 + $3 + $5 = $14.

Mental math: practice math problems

Mental math: worksheets

When it comes to mental math, practice makes perfect. These worksheets are designed to help you build your mental math skills with math equations, problems and puzzles that you’ll learn to solve using just your brain.

• Basic multiplication worksheets
• Addition without regrouping worksheets
• Multiplication tables 1-12 worksheets
• Math facts worksheets

Camille Ira B. Mendoza

21 articles

I am a seasoned math tutor with over seven years of experience in the field. Holding a Master’s Degree in Education, I take great joy in nurturing young math enthusiasts, regardless of their age, grade, and skill level. Beyond teaching, I am passionate about spending time with my family, reading, and watching movies. My background also includes knowledge in child psychology, which aids in delivering personalized and effective teaching strategies.