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What you'll learn

  • Round numbers to the nearest 10, 100 and 1,000 using the deciding digit
  • Round numbers up to 1,000,000 to the nearest 10,000 and 100,000
  • Why a number exactly halfway, like 2,650, rounds up
  • Round numbers like 39,960, where the 9s roll over to 40,000
  • Use rounding to estimate and check whether a calculation is sensible
  • Decide when a number must be exact and when rounding is fine

Chapter by chapter

  1. Round numbers to the nearest 10, 100 and 1,000 Free to try

    Year 5 maths · 1

  2. Round numbers to the nearest 10,000 and 100,000

    Year 5 maths · 1

  3. Round numbers when the 9s roll over

    Year 5 maths · 1

  4. Use rounding to check answers to calculations

    Year 5 maths · 2

  5. Decide how accurate an answer needs to be

    Year 5 maths · 2

  6. Summit Challenge: mixed rounding quiz (10 questions)

See every Maths chapter in the chapter library

What the chapters cover in the national curriculum in England:

  1. Year 5 maths: Round any number up to 1,000,000 to the nearest 10, 100, 1,000, 10,000 and 100,000
  2. Year 5 maths: Use rounding to check answers to calculations and determine, in the context of a problem, levels of accuracy

About this adventure

Rounding Hills is an interactive game that teaches children aged 9–10 rounding numbers up to 1,000,000 to the nearest 10, 100, 1,000, 10,000 and 100,000, and how to use rounding to check answers. It follows the Year 5 maths national curriculum for England.

Players drag Rory the Rover onto a number hill between two multiples, find the halfway point at the top, and watch Rory roll down to the nearer one. A place value chart then shows the deciding digit, which sits just to the right of the rounding place: 5 or more rounds up, 4 or less keeps the rounding digit the same.

Later, children estimate to test a robot's calculations, meet the approximately equal sign (≈), and decide when a number should be exact, like change in a shop, and when a rounded number is clearer, like the size of a crowd.

Questions and answers

How do you round a number to the nearest 1,000?

Look at the hundreds digit, which is just to the right of the thousands place. If it is 5 or more, the thousands digit goes up by one; if it is 4 or less, it stays the same. Every digit after the thousands place becomes zero, so 4,370 rounds to 4,000.

Why does 39,960 round to 40,000 to the nearest 100?

39,960 rounds to 40,000 because its tens digit, 6, means rounding up the hundreds. The hundreds digit is 9, so it rolls over to 0 and pushes the thousands up, and that 9 rolls over too, turning the 3 ten thousands into 4.

How does rounding help you check an answer?

Rounding gives a quick estimate to compare with the real answer. For 48,295 + 31,640, rounding to 50,000 + 30,000 gives about 80,000, so an answer of 52,935 must be wrong, while an answer close to 80,000 is sensible.

What age is this rounding game for?

The game is made for children aged 9 to 10 in Year 5 and follows the national curriculum for England. It starts with rounding to the nearest 10, 100 and 1,000, so it also suits Year 6 children who want to revise.

What does the Rounding Hills game include and how long does it take?

It has five chapters, an optional place value warm-up and a 10-question Summit Challenge, and takes about 40 minutes to play everything. Instructions are read aloud, answers are typed on an on-screen keypad, and each chapter ends with a short recap.

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