Num-Aerobics
Add, subtract, then times, divide
Keep it simple they confide
Beat your time and know with pride
Neuron dendrites stretched out wide
Times, divide, subtract, and add
It's not just a passing fad
Minutes spent will make you glad
Slow your aging rate a tad.
Arithmetic problems (taught to the tune of a hickory stick for some of you) can be used as brain-aerobic exercises. These sets of Num-Aerobics are designed to help you stimulate and challenge your brain. Interestingly enough, studies have shown that you tend to get more bang for your buck when you challenge your brain with simple rather than complex arithmetic problems. The real benefit seems to come in continually competing against yourself, trying to beat your own time for arriving at the answers.
Write your answers to these simple math problems on a separate piece of paper. Your goal is to answer the set of arithmetic questions accurately in the shortest amount of time. Time yourself using a watch with a second hand, or a stop watch, or through the kindness of a friend who watches the clock for you.
Once you have completed a set and know your completion time, review the questions and make sure you did the computations correctly. Your goal is to beat your own time. The next time you do Num-Aerobics, try to reduce the time it takes to answer the set of questions correctly.
Keep your brain interested by varying the sets. Rotate among sets of addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and calculation sets. Try creating some of your own puzzle sets and exchange them with friends.
The following PDF files will open in a new window. You can practice online or you can print out the files. Most are two pages.
