Let's break this down. We're going to add 9697 and 4244 together.

Step 1: We'll start by adding the digits 7 & 4 in column 1 and get 11.
We'll write down the last digit 1 and carry the 1 to the next column.

Step 2: We'll start by adding the digits 9 & 4 in column 2 and get 14.
We'll write down the last digit 4 and carry the 1 to the next column.

Step 3: We'll start by adding the digits 6 & 2 in column 3 and get 9.

Step 4: We'll start by adding the digits 9 & 4 in column 4 and get 13.
We'll write down the last digit 3 and carry the 1 to the next column.

So, 9697 + 4244 = 13941.

