Square Roots and Patterns

12 1
22 4
32 9
42 16
52 25
62 36
72 49
82 64
92 81
102 100

All numbers that are compliments of

each other i.e. they add up to 10, have
squares with same ’units’ digits
This makes it easy to
guess the square root
of large numbers
without a calculator,
and of course
mentally.

But first lets us look at

another pattern
For squares of numbers ending in 5, the
last two digits will always be 25

52 25
152 __ 25
252 __ 25
352 __ 25
452 __ 25
552 __ 25
652 __ 25
752 __ 25
852 __ 25
952 __ 25

But what about the first digits?

Let us look at this again

52 25
2x
1 52 2 25
3x
2 52 __ 25
4x
3 52 __ 25
5x
4 52 __ 25
6x
5 52 30 25
7x
6 52 __ 25
8x
7 52 __ 25
9x
8 52 __ 25
10 x
9 52 90 25

Find the rest, yourselves!

Using all this information, let us find the
square root of 169
1 First look at the last digit of 169
2 This will give you last digit of its
square root
3 Its square root will have either 3
or 7 as last digits. (because under root of
49 is 7 and of 9 it is 3. So following the pattern, any
number ending in a 9 will have an under root with
3 or 7 as last digits) But which? 3 or 7
4 Next look at first digit of 169.
Ask yourself which number
square equals 1? It is 1…
5 So our square root will be either
13 or 17
6 But 152 = 225 so 172 cannot be
the answer. Hence 13 is our
answer
Because when we compare, 15 is more
than 13..

So 152 will be more than 132

So 132 = 169 is our answer

Exercise 1:

Find square root of 289,

mentally
Analysis and thought process

 Last digit of our answer will be 3 or 7

 Which number square equals 2 or
close to 2 (it is 12 )
 Tell us why the answer is 17

Remember!
For finding first digit of the answer, ask
yourself “which number square is close to
or less than the first digit of the problem”

Exercise 2:
Now find square root of 784
  2 or 8 … last digit of answer
 Which number square is close to 7
for first digit of answer 2
 Possible answers 22 or 28
 But 252 = 625

And 784 is more than 625 so answer is

28 because 282 = 784

Exercise 3:
What is square root of 2025?
Give two ways to find it
Exercise 4:
What is square root of 3721?

 Answer will end in 1 or 9

 First digit of answer will be 6
(62 =36, less than / close to 37)
 61 or 69
2
 65 = 4225 (extra info 602 = 3600)

 So answer is 61
Exercise:
Now find Sqrt of 9216 and of
576
Write your thought process
 The right answer of course is 24
The square of 4 and 6 have last digits
ending in 6
So for the square root of 576, the last
digit will be either 4 or 6
Which will it be?

Write 576 and cross out the last two

digits 576
Which number sqr is close to 5? 2 of
course