Take three hands-up answers, not open call-outs. Don't reveal the number line yet — this is just to surface the idea of a number sitting between two tens. Listen for a pupil who says closer to 40 and hold that thought for the next step.

42: two steps past 40, units digit 2 is small, rounds down to 40. Stress the units digit tells you how far past the last ten, so it decides the direction.

68: two steps short of 70, units digit 8 is big, rounds up to 70. Ask what happens to a number exactly in the middle, and pause before revealing 35.

35: the key case. Exactly halfway between 30 and 40, closer to neither, so the rule decides: ending in 5 rounds up, so 35 goes to 40. Land this one slowly.

90: already on a ten, nothing to round, stays 90. The reassurance case.

This round is for talking it through together — pupils take turns at the board and the class agrees or corrects out loud.

Work through the four numbers in order. An individual pupil comes up, drags the marker to the number, then reads off which ten is closer.

• 24 — units digit 4, rounds down to 20. A gentle opener.
• 51 — units digit 1, rounds down to 50. Watch pupils who want to round up just because 51 is bigger than 50 — the question is which ten is closer.
• 76 — units digit 6, rounds up to 80.
• 45 — the pause. Get the class to say a five rounds up before anyone touches the marker, then round to 50.

These are the practice questions — pupils take turns at the board, check each answer, and the class confirms before moving on. Keep the board work brisk rather than over-explaining.

• 23 — rounds down to 20. Quick warm-up.
• 47 — rounds up to 50.
• 85 — halfway, so it rounds up to 90. Ask for the rule first.
• 198 — the key one. Units digit 8 rounds up, and 190 → 200 means the number rolls over into a new hundred. Remind the class that 200 is still the nearest ten. Let them predict where the marker lands before it is checked.