Challenge
60-second arithmetic sprint
A short mental arithmetic pressure drill designed as a quick daily warm-up.
- Skill
- Numerical reasoning
- Duration
- 60 seconds
- Access
- Free daily starter
What it trains
- Mental arithmetic
- Pace control
- Careful calculation
What the debrief covers
- Accuracy under short time pressure
- Average response time
- Recommended follow-up module
How to approach it
- 1Read the whole sum before you start and pick a method: split the numbers, round and adjust, or multiply by a friendly number.
- 2Lean on anchors you already know: 25 is a quarter of 100, and 15% is 10% plus half of that again.
- 3If one item stalls you, make your best careful attempt and move on so a single sum does not consume the minute.
Worked example
48 × 25
Multiply by 100 and divide by 4: 48 × 100 = 4,800, and 4,800 ÷ 4 = 1,200.
Answer: 1,200
Common mistakes
- Dropping or adding a zero when multiplying by tens or hundreds.
- Rushing a subtraction that needs borrowing, the most common slip under time pressure.