SIMCC Games · Teacher guide
Mental Arithmetic Challenge
Answer as many sums as you can in 60 seconds.
- Trains
- Number bonds to 20 · Times tables and division facts · Two-digit sums
- Ages
- 7 and up
- In class
- On your own. One device each. Choose a level: Number bonds, Times tables, Two-digit or Mixed. Practice turns the 60-second clock off.
A ten-minute starter
- Show about 2 minAsk three quick questions out loud. Explain: type the answer and it counts the moment it is right. Press Enter on a question you are stuck on; it counts as wrong and shows the answer.
- Play about 6 minStudents play 60-second rounds at a level that suits them and try to beat their own best.
- Talk about 2 minThe results list every missed question with its answer. Ask which kind slowed people down, and share a quick way to do one.
Questions to ask the class
- What is a quick way to work out 8 + 7?Listen for: Make 10 first: 8 + 2 + 5 = 15. Other good ways too.
- Is it better to answer fast or to answer right?Listen for: Right. A round counts as solved only with at least 10 right and at least 80% right.
- If 6 × 7 = 42, what else do you know?Listen for: 7 × 6 = 42, 42 ÷ 7 = 6 and 42 ÷ 6 = 7.
A common mistake
Guessing quickly to fit more answers in.
How to help: Guessing does not count: a solved round needs at least 80% right. Turn on Practice (no clock) for a student who panics against time.
Assign it
On the coach dashboard, choose your class under Cohorts. In Assign practice, pick Mental Arithmetic Challenge and the drill Mental Arithmetic Challenge, add a due date if you want one, then press Assign. Students find it on their Train page.
Students choose the level when the round starts. Practice rounds count towards progress but not towards a best score.
Results show on the dashboard by student and by game once the server has checked them.