Add numbers with 4 digits or more together | Year 6 Mathematics PDF Download

Adding 4-Digit Numbers

• The primary technique for adding numbers with four digits or more involves using column addition. 
• The same method used for adding numbers with three digits can be extended to larger numbers.

Column Addition Method

• The column addition method entails writing one number from the sum beneath the other.
• Numbers are added starting from the rightmost column.
• If the sum of two numbers in a place value column exceeds 9, a digit must be carried over.

Examples

Example 1:

• What is 34,523 + 3,291? Add the ones column: 3 + 1 = 4. Place 4 in the ones column.
  
• Add the tens column: 20 + 90 = 110. Place 1 in the tens column and carry 1 to the hundreds column.
  
• Add the hundreds column: 500 + 200 + 100 (carried over) = 800.
  
• Add the thousands column: 4000 + 3000 = 7000.
  
• Add the tens of thousands column: 30,000 + 0 = 30,000.
  
• The final result of adding 34,523 and 3,291 is 37,814.

Example 2: Emily thinks that 27,342 + 22,812 = 49,154. Is she correct?
Emily hasn’t shown her working out so use the column method to check her answer.

• What is 27,342 + 22,812? Add the ones column: 2 + 2 = 4.
  
• Move to the tens column: 40 + 10 = 50.
  
• Add the hundreds column: 300 + 800 = 1,100. Carry the 1,000 over to the thousands column.
  
• Add the thousands column: 7,000 + 2,000 + 1,000 (carried over) = 10,000. Carry over to the tens of thousands column and place 0 in the thousands column.
  
• Add the tens of thousands column: 20,000 + 20,000 + 10,000 (carried over) = 50,000.
  
• The final result of adding 27,342 and 22,812 is 50,154.

Emily answered 49,154, which is incorrect. She forgot to carry over her thousand and ten thousand to the correct place value!

Checklist

• Arrange the numbers in columns based on their place value.
• The order of the numbers doesn’t matter. For instance, 23,345 + 11,129 is the same as 11,129 + 23,345.
• Make a rough estimate before you begin adding.
• Begin with the rightmost column, adding the ones first.
• Key words to watch for in problems include: total, sum, altogether, more. These all signal an addition calculation.