Mum left stumped by maths problem for seven-year-olds that 'makes no sense'

02 November 2023 , 09:25

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Parents have been left totally stumped by a tricky homework question (Image: Getty Images/Westend61)

When it comes to helping your child with their homework, you do not expect to end up sitting at the table for an hour trying to answer the same question. But for one mum, this became her reality after she was faced with a maths problem that "makes no sense", saying she mulled it over for a full 60 minutes before taking to Reddit for help.

The mum, who works as a teacher, said: "The teacher asked for an answer as well that includes the numbers. I'm so stuck. This is probably so easy, but after an hour, I'm at my wits' end! It's a second grade maths [question] that we can't figure out. Please help this mama out."

The question reads: "Stretch your thinking. Write an addition equation. The equation must have a 1-, a 2-, and a 3-digit addend and use all of these digits. 6 6 2 2 8 8 0 0 0." Wanting to help, Reddit users took to the comment section to try to work out the equation - but many struggled themselves. One user asked: "is 0 one digit or no digit?"

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Another user added: "I would say one it's a placeholder for a real number but it's taking up the space here." A third user said: "I wonder, however, why anyone in the educational system would think something like this is useful or practical."

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One more user asked: "The statement just says it must use all of these numbers, doesn’t that mean you could use all of those and others as well?" But then, another came through with the answer - and an explanation showing their working. They said: "800 + 60 + 2 = 862."

In response, the relieved mum said: "Why did you make it look so easy! We were about to start WWIII over here and you just whipped it out like the obvious thing that it is. Thank you for saving my tired brain and also my child’s teacher from a very worded email. You win hero of the day!

"The irony? I am a teacher…. Sometimes the answer is obvious you just need a little nudge. While it may be super easy for some it can be hard for others."

Paige Freshwater