i) to try to improve basic numeracy skills in the areas of multiplication and addition with the help of the online program "Numerical Acumen". 

ii) To analyse the efficacy of the approach provided through use of Numerical Acumen in developing strategies which lead to improvements in speed and accuracy in multiplication and addition. (P.S. Fraction skill development was another area of focus provided by the program but was not the subject of attention in this trial)

>Stresses the need to teach explicit strategies.
>Issues arising from some teachers are not competent in teaching these strategies.

>Created a framework of 5 strategies - one strategy per term. Pre-test, mid progress test and post test for each strategy.

>Students had to explain how they used strategies in tests. 

McIntosh, A. (2006). Mental computation of school-aged students: Assessment, performance levels and common errors. Developing and researching quality, 1-10.
>In everyday lives, ¾ of our calculations are mental..therefore necessary to make mental maths part of the curriculum.
>Biggest problem area was addition and subtraction of whole numbers - procedural errors were made (as opposed to conceptual). >Should be checking what procedures students are already using and directing them away from inefficient strategies.
>Difficult to define and measure the strategies that students are using.
Price, G. R., Mazzocco, M. M., & Ansari, D. (2013). Why mental arithmetic counts: brain activation during single digit arithmetic predicts high school math scores. The Journal of Neuroscience, 33(1), 156-163.

>The mastery of arithmetic at a young age has significant implications for the success of later mathematic achievement.
>Schools need to focus time on developing mental maths skills
Rogers, A. (2009). Mental Computation in the Primary Classroom. In MAV Annual Conference (pp. 190-199).
>Dedicated time should be given to the teaching of mental computation from prep.

> time pressures on learning mental arithmetic can be detrimental for students who have not grasped the concepts properly.

>the concept will be committed to memory more strongly through mental and written practice.

The strategy that involved explicit teaching of the specific topic, allowed for students to discover new strategies to mental arithmetic prior to working on the topic. This strategy has shown improvements in student outcomes from pre to post tests on each topic. 

The main improvements in student results has come in the time it has taken for students to complete the pre test compared to the post test. Along with the decrease in time of the students there has also been minor improvements in the accuracy of the results.  

The constant review of the new strategies in class allowed for students to continually practice the new approach, which has lead to the improvement in times as students have become more confident in their mental arithmetic.

Students who started out with a high time in the pre tests generally showed the biggest improvements in their post tests, however students who already had their own strategies in how to complete the questions (low time), didn’t show big improvements as they didn’t have much room to move.