Using four of the digits 1,  2,  2,  5,  6 what are the smallest and largest four-digit numbers that can be made?  

Smallest is 1,225

Largest is 6,522

Note that you can only use digits that are given to you, so numbers such as 1,111 and 6,666 will not count.

To make the smallest number, we start by taking the smallest digit and putting that in the thousands place. We then work through taking the next smallest each time.

To make the largest, we do it the other way round! We take the largest digit and put that in the thousands place. Then work on through taking the next largest each time.

Did you notice that we added a comma between the thousands and the hundreds? We could have put a space instead eg. 6 522.

Breaking a number up using commas or spaces makes it much easier to read long numbers, so it is a good skill to practise.

Let's see how we get on with this in the questions that follow!