Six squaring missions that make your child the quickest calculator in the room
Squaring Secrets is Book 1 of Math Magic Missions. Every trick starts as a mystery, ends as a game, and comes with the reason it works, so your child remembers it long after the worksheet is done. Fifteen minutes a day, any curriculum, any country.
Start the missions todayInstant 32-page PDF download. Print it or use it on a tablet.
Try one trick right now
96² = 9216
48 × 52 = 2496
Your child can do the math. So why does it feel so hard?
- You have watched your child reach for a calculator to work out 25 × 4.
- You have seen a page of sums finished on Monday and forgotten by Friday.
- You have heard “I’m just not a math person” and felt your heart sink a little.
- You know practice matters, yet more worksheets only seem to bring more sighs.
Here is the surprising part. The problem is rarely ability. Most children are handed rules to memorise without ever being shown why the rule works, so each new topic feels like one more thing to forget. When a child discovers a pattern for themselves, it stops being a rule and starts being their trick, and children love showing off their own tricks.
Why I made these books
I’m Smita, and I run a mathematics academy in Bhubaneswar, India, where I teach school students every week. Long before that, I was a parent sitting at the kitchen table with my own children, working through olympiad problems that sometimes took us days to crack.
Those days taught me something no textbook had. My children never remembered the answers I explained to them. They remembered the patterns they spotted themselves, the moment a strange-looking result suddenly made sense. That habit of looking for patterns carried them all the way to the national level of junior math olympiads.
I’m writing Math Magic Missions as a series of short books to give your child that same feeling, packed into small daily missions you can do together. I started with squaring, because nothing makes a child feel cleverer than squaring a big number before the adults find their phones.
Smita
Meet Book 1: Squaring Secrets
Math Magic Missions is a series of printable activity books of mental math tricks. Book 1, Squaring Secrets, turns six squaring tricks into short missions your child can finish in about fifteen minutes each.
Picture a Sunday lunch a few weeks from now. Your child turns to their grandfather and says, “Pick any number near 100 and I’ll square it before you can find your phone.” You watch the grin as the answer comes out first, and you hear the whole table laugh. That is the moment this book is built for, and once you start the first mission, you’ll see it coming sooner than you expect.
Every mission follows the same five steps
Mystery
A few surprising answers. Your child hunts for the pattern first.
Reveal
The trick, step by step, with worked examples.
The secret
Why it really works, drawn with squares of tiles, then proved with simple algebra.
Get your badge
Bronze, Silver and Gold questions. Clear them all to colour the mission badge.
Game
A code to crack, a race to win, or a magic trick for the family.
The six missions in Book 1
The Big-Five Blaster
Square numbers ending in 5, even three-digit ones like 135² and 995², in your head.
The Fifty Force Field
Square any number from 41 to 59 in two quick steps, then run it backwards as a mind-reading trick.
The Hundred Hop
Square numbers close to 100, like 96² or 104², in seconds.
The Square Splitter
Square any two-digit number at all, even the awkward ones like 67².
The Staircase Jump
Know one square and instantly know the next one up or down, so 31² and 29² come straight from 30².
The Twin Trick
Multiply twin numbers either side of an easy number, like 48 × 52 or 97 × 103.
Plus a mission tracker with badges to colour in, “draw it yourself” grids where your child proves each trick with tiles, a Boss Challenge that mixes all six tricks, a parents’ guide, a full answer key and a Square Master certificate. 32 pages in all.
Book 1 of a growing series
Each book covers one family of tricks, so your child finishes something complete in about a week and can pick up the next book when they’re ready.
Squaring Secrets
Six missions for squaring numbers near 50, near 100, ending in 5, and everything in between.
Multiplication Shortcuts
Tricks for × 5, × 9, × 11, × 25 and numbers near 100, so your child multiplies in their head instead of on scrap paper.
Division and Divisibility
Quick checks for 3, 4, 8, 9 and 11, plus fraction anchors, so your child spots answers before working them out.
Later books will cover adding and subtracting, percentages and checking, and challenge tricks like square and cube roots.
Peek inside a mission
Mission 3: The Hundred Hop
After learning how to square numbers near 100, your child cracks this code. Each answer matches a letter, and the letters spell out what they’re becoming.
| Question | 99² | 98² | 101² | 95² | 106² | 93² |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Answer | ||||||
| Letter |
The answer is inside the book, along with the trick that makes all six take under a minute.
Is this book right for your child?
It’s for you if
- Your child is in grades 5 to 8, or is younger and loves numbers.
- You want math time at home to feel like play, not homework.
- Your child likes puzzles, codes, races or showing off a clever trick.
- You want tricks your child understands, not just memorises.
- Your child is curious about olympiads and needs a friendly starting point.
It’s not for you if
- You’re looking for a full school syllabus or exam prep course.
- Your child hasn’t learned times tables yet. Start there first.
Get Book 1: Squaring Secrets today
Six missions of discovery, games and practice that your child will actually ask to do, for less than the cost of a single tuition class.
- 6 squaring missions, each with mystery, reveal, secret, practice and game
- Picture proofs and simple algebra showing why every trick works
- Bronze, Silver and Gold practice for every trick
- A Boss Challenge and a Square Master certificate
- Mission tracker, parents’ guide and full answer key
- 32-page PDF, instant download, print as many copies as your family needs
Pick the one that matches where you are:
In India
UPI, cards or netbanking
Outside India
International cards, charged in USD
Your download arrives as soon as payment goes through. Because this is a digital product, sales are final, but if your file doesn’t arrive or won’t open, send me a message and I’ll sort it out personally.
Questions parents ask
How will I receive the book?
As a PDF, straight after payment. You can print it, or your child can write answers on a tablet with any PDF app.
Which grades is it for?
It’s written for grades 5 to 8. Younger children who know their times tables enjoy the early missions, and older students find the algebra behind each trick a good stretch.
Does it follow a particular curriculum?
No. These are mental math skills that work alongside any school board or country’s syllabus, from CBSE to Common Core to the UK curriculum.
How much time does it take?
About fifteen minutes per mission. One mission a day finishes Book 1 in about a week, and most children go back to replay the games.
Do I need to be good at math to help?
Not at all. Every mission explains the trick in plain steps, and the answer key covers every question and game, so you can learn right alongside your child.
When are Books 2 and 3 coming out?
I’m writing them now. Book 2 covers multiplication shortcuts and Book 3 covers division and divisibility. Each book stands on its own, so your child can start with Book 1 today. Follow along on my Substack to hear the moment each one is ready.
Can I print copies for my other children?
Yes, print as many copies as your own family needs. Please don’t share or resell the file outside your home.
What if I have a problem with my payment or download?
Send me a message and I’ll help you directly. I read every one myself.
Give your child their first math superpower this week
Imagine the look on their face when they beat the calculator for the first time, and then ask for the next mission. You can start tonight with Mission 1, because your download is ready the moment you pay.
Yes, start the missions