Mental arithmetic involves solving mathematical problems in one's head.You can read making maths more fun by teresa evans review here. It is a common technique used by teachers to teach maths in a fun way. The fact that arithmetic games are usually undertaken as a group activity encourages broad participation, with the benefit of friendly rivalry. Mental arithmetic can alter an otherwise dull subject for many students, so that it appears more relevant, with the added advantage of enabling children to demonstrate speed and mental agility.

This article will go deeper into this subject and show that beyond teaching the basics of mathematics, mental arithmetic games will instruct students in a whole range of mathematical concepts. There is the added benefit that confidence is derived through being able to solve these problems without the use of a calculator.

Another technique that mental arithmetic games should teach is the application of 'rounding'. This skill will again be useful in the student's later life, for simplifying calculations. For example, the calculation 1.95 + 3.45 can be done by adding 2 and 3.5 to arrive at a quick and easy figure, and the finer calculation to arrive at the final figure can again be done by the adjustment outlined in example one, but in this case by subtracting 0.1.

Now that you know the winning strategy, you can use this secret to play and win against people who haven't yet figured it out. The matchstick game is part of a broader class of games known as "Nim Games" in which the winning strategy depends on performing some modular arithmetic to keep the sum of the remaining objects at a number of a certain form. This is an excellent game to teach children the value of doing mental arithmetic quickly.

Mental arithmetic games usually involve the concept of real object and real world situations, helping the student to visualise problems and making the exercise more relevant and understandable. This visualisation is in itself, also a mental exercise, helping to instil into the minds of students that maths is not just about theoretical games, but is a rational way of dealing with numerical problems that the real world throws at them.