Legs Eleven

Take any four digit number. Move the first digit to the end and move the rest along. Now add your two numbers. Did you get a multiple of 11?
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Problem

Legs Eleven printable sheet



Take any four-digit number.

Create a second number by moving the first digit to the 'back of the queue' and moving the rest along. 

Now add your two numbers.

I predict your answer will be a multiple of 11...

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Legs Eleven
 

Try it a few times. Is the answer always a multiple of $11$?

Can you explain why?

Click below to see what Samira noticed:



"I started with 5 thousands, 2 hundreds, 3 tens and 8 units.

After I moved the digits along, my new number had 2 thousands, 3 hundreds, 8 tens and 5 units. 

I wonder if this can help me explain what's happening?"



Click below to see what Jay noticed:



"I picked 1000 as my first number, so my second number was 0001 and the total was 1001.

I know 1001 is a multiple of 11 because it is 1100-99, and 1100 and 99 are both multiples of 11."

 



Do these observations help you to explain what's going on?

What if you start with a three-digit number?

Or a five-digit number?

Or a six-digit number?

Or a 38-digit numbers ... ?

Can you prove your findings?

You may be interested in this article on Divisibility Tests.

Click here for a poster of this problem.