Mental Multiplying--You Can Do This!

Are you like most people when you hear the words 'Mental Math' you immediately rebel and ask yourself, "Why mess with that?"  Or perhaps you might be thinking it is far too difficult and there is no advantage for me, right?

You could be at the market, and want to know very quickly how many units of something you can buy with the cash you have.  Maybe you are an attorney, and you need to do some quick Math while defending your client.  Whatever the situation, the quicker you can think on your toes, the greater the advantage you definitely have.

Let's take a look at the basics of multiplying a couple numbers in your head, and without using the calculator on your cell phone, or paper and pencil.

Evaluate 4(96)
Using the Distributive Property, think of a couple different ways to add or subtract two numbers to yield 96.
Solution 1:
4(100 - 4)
4(100) - 4(4)
400 - 16
384

Solution 2:
4(90 + 6)
4(90) + 4(6)
360 + 24
384

Which solution did you prefer?  Did you notice that both solutions gained the same answer?  It is important to proceed with your solution using numbers that are easy to multiply in your head, so we are referring to numbers that are being multiplied by a multiple of 10, and possibly multiples of 100 or 1000, in addition to performing simple calculations from numbers that are a part of the basic multiplication tables that most of us memorized in elementary or middle school.

Try it, and with a little practice, you will be an expert very quickly!  Don't forget to teach this great tip to a family member or friend!  If you take a few minutes to explain it to someone, you will increase your own skills and gain much confidence!

Happy Multiplying!