summer math review (k/1st)? *a few more questions in a new reply*

[anna.mullenax]

Hi!

 

I finished up Math U See Primer with my 6 1/2 year old Kindergartner.  She got through almost everything, but was definitely struggling with some of the ideas, like place value, and I could just tell from watching her do her work that she didn't "get" what she was doing intuitively, she had to build and painstakingly count the math blocks even for things we had been working on for a while.  For example, adding 1 to any number...she would have to build it ever single time.  To me that kind of shows that she didn't really grasp what adding 1 really means, even though we've  done "build, say, write" over and over!  

 

So...I am thinking of getting something to help with those math thinking skills in the summer, and also to review Kindergarten math concepts before we move on to MUS Alpha.  I hear so much about Singapore and how it teaches mathematical thinking, etc.  The website overwhelms me.  For my purposes, could I buy a kindergarten workbook and work through it with my daughter this summer?  Or would I have to buy a textbook and workbook and teachers guide of some kind?  Another question, what level do you think would be a good Kindergarten review?  She has no problem with numbers through 10 or any of those really "basic" things. 

 

And....if not Singapore, does anyone have any good (reasonably inexpensive) ideas for summer math review?

 

Thanks for any wisdom you have to share!

 

Anna

Edited May 17, 2017 by celvig

[JMG221]

It wont help with place value, but my daughter really loved Addition Facts That Stick by Kate Snow. It is 6 weeks of fun games that really cemented additon facts for her. Bonus, it is cheap on Amazon.

[nixpix5]

For that level of singapore I have never cracked open my teaching manual and my daughter didn't even touch the textbook. It was a waste of money for us. There are two books; one is the workbook and then there is an intensive practice. I am not sure about K because I haven't seen it but certainly the 1st grade level (in the main workbook) covers place value. They do a pretty good job and we haven't needed to use the intensive practice workbook. Place value is one of those things that takes a bit of practice. If you can get your hands on some Montessori place value cards they help. I actually just downloaded some for free from a website and laminated them but they were the thing that clicked it into place for my 6 year old. Using the MUS blocks with the place value cards was the ah ha moment. :)

[MistyMountain]

It wont help with place value, but my daughter really loved Addition Facts That Stick by Kate Snow. It is 6 weeks of fun games that really cemented additon facts for her. Bonus, it is cheap on Amazon.

Yes this and Subtraction Facts that Stick but any resource that builds on the ability to see the numbers from 1-10 and then 10-20 without counting when grouped together in fives and to know they are made of smaller numbers inside it. If you can really picture that then working on place value after that is down becomes easier. Education Unboxed is a good resource too.

Edited May 5, 2017 by MistyMountain

[SoCal_Bear]

I have another suggestion. Why not just move on to MUS Alpha instead of working on review? If you are going to do math anyways, there's no magical reason to wait to start Alpha in the fall. I imagine that you may not what to use it everyday like during Sept to May...but even working at it a few times a week seems to be the same effort as doing a review book.

Edited May 6, 2017 by calbear

[Stibalfamily]

My K boy is 61/2 and we did Math-U-See primer as well. We also did DK Kindergarten Math and Skill Sharpeners K math. Those did not cover place value though. To help with place value we used a few things. We used a Right Start's abacus for numbers 100 and under. We have a number chart that goes to 200. If we were working on building a number occasionally I had him locate it on the chart. 

 

I laminated this place value mat and used number cards to build a lot of different single, double and triple digit numbers. 

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Place-Value-Base-10-Sorting-Mat-1157860

 

I used place value cards that you print out, laminate and cut out. Then have them build the number. You can buy them too.

http://www.mathematicallyminded.com/free-downloads/

https://www.rainbowresource.com/proddtl.php?id=025803

 

We used a place value abacus as well.

http://www.rainbowresource.com/product/sku/036950

 

There is also a Dino Math Tracks game that teaches place value. I bought it but haven't used it yet. This summer we plan on doing Addition facts that Stick, like many have already mentioned. We plan on playing some right start games and some of our other math games as well. We may work on subitizing skills too. 

Edited May 6, 2017 by Stibalfamily

[fralala]

I agree that games are the way to go. I really like Peggy Kaye's Games for Math, too.

 

For K math, I very much found that some math concepts (like adding on) were a developmental issue-- one day my kids weren't doing it, the next they were, and while I like to think my patient modeling of the right way to do it might have influenced them somewhat, it seemed more like something just "clicking" independent of my influence. But many, many dice and card games and animal tea parties (are there enough cookies to go around? how many more do we need?) went into that moment. You could definitely get a Singapore Math workbook if your child is one who enjoys doing workbooks, but conceptually I'm not sure they add much other than bright pictorial representations. (I think the conceptual math presentation of SM1 is superior, but the K program is kind of interchangeable with many others.)

[ExcitedMama]

Check out Miquon, the first book is Orange. It is more discovery based and therefore really helps a child understand what they are doing in math. DS had done Singapore Essentials in K but I thought it was way too easy and not very informative.

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

I'd buy cuisinaire rods and watch the videos on educationunboxed.com.  I would not buy a different math curriculum for review.  But I do love Singapore as a main curriculum.  

[winterbaby]

I would agree that having to carefully work out things like adding one to a number is probably developmental and unlikely to respond to a curriculum change or addition. But I also definitely wouldn't drop math for the summer and I wouldn't even think of it as "review." I would work on composing and decomposing numbers in a very basic way you don't even need a curriculum for, just with basic counters.  I would start with numbers through 5 and not move on to numbers through 10 until she had completely mastered all the different ways 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 can be taken apart and put together. In the nineteenth century they would start with 1 and 2 and not even proceed to the next number, one by one, until all decompositions of the one before it had been mastered. That really motivates and explores what adding 1 means! Then expand that through 10. I would not worry about place value; if she's not getting relationships within 10, she's not ready to go over 10 and place value is irrelevant. I would also not worry about writing; do this all orally or do the writing yourself.  Any writing should be in the form of "recording" what's going on with the counters, not in abstraction on its own. Constantly relate addition and subtraction to each other, e.g. if 2 + 1 = 3 then 3 -1 = 2. Also do decompositions with 3 elements e.g. 5 = 1 + 1 + 3 etc. Get her really familiar with these numbers. And be patient. Countries that don't even start academic instruction until 7 or 8 get fine results. I am surprised and a little concerned to hear of place value even being an issue at the kindergarten level.

 

I haven't used Addition Facts That Stick but from reading the Amazon preview I don't think it's appropriate to your situation - she says her target is upper elementary students who are still slowed up by not having memorized these facts. Memorizing should come after actually learning the concepts and if your daughter is still working on adding 1 with manipulatives I don't think she'd do really well with visualizing elements moving to different parts of a pair of ten frames, which is what that program seems to be based on. Also, addition and subtraction need to be taught together.

[anna.mullenax]

Hi guys,

 

Ok I'm bumping this back up because I looked into these suggestions.  And also today we had a major meltdown in math and its just becoming clearer to me that in her brain numbers are sort of just random things we memorize and there is no rhyme or reason to what number comes after another number.  I feel kind of embarrassed asking for help to figure out how to teach my child to count in a way that she understands what is happening?!  I think it just doesn't come naturally to her, because I have a younger daughter who is almost 5 and she was sitting in on the lesson and just DYING to chime in with the right answers.  I know I shouldn't compare them, but its hard not to feel that my 6 1/2 year old is quite "behind" if her not even 5 year old sister grasps the ideas by just sitting in.

 

So the "Addition Facts that Stick" I don't think applies to us, yet!  @winterbaby - I think your idea of breaking down numbers is wonderful and is on target with what she needs!! But I need a "plan" to follow...do you have any ideas for resources for this?  I have the Math-U-See math blocks..are they good for this or do I need something else? Maybe those stackable little math blocks?  Then I could spend 10 minutes a day working on breaking down numbers?   

 

Still need to look at Miquon orange and I am also thinking of doing Life With Fred Apples as a math activity once or twice a week with all the kids for something different.  We're going to take a couple of weeks completely "off" and then start math back up for the summer. 

 

Thanks!!!

[MistyMountain]

I would go for the Ronit Bird Dots ebook in that case then or the Toolkit textbook if you do not have an ereader. Ronit Bird made those materials for dyscalculia. It starts at the beggining an developes number sense. You may want to cross post in learning challenges.

Edited May 17, 2017 by MistyMountain

[kristinainar]

I'd give Addition Facts That Stick a try. I ran across it and ordered it on a whim just to change things up for my six-year-old daughter. We were using Miquon and while she could add, subtract and multiply easily with the rods, she couldn't answer simple equations (1+1) without them. The games in the book really helped her and she actually enjoys math now. We took a bit longer than six weeks to work through the book and still use the games for practice. We also did the practice pages orally (and with the ten-frame as needed). I've learned this school year that she's a very "right-brained"/"visual" child, though, so that may have helped her have success with it. She can add pretty much any two, one digit numbers mentally now whereas she couldn't do this when we were working only with Miquon and the rods. It's honestly worth a shot. :)

[Stibalfamily]

Ronit Bird has some nice e books on number sense. But the same author of Addition Facts that Stick has a book for preschoolers. It has activities to help develop number sense as well. 

[winterbaby]

Here are two things you can look at for de/composition and relationships within 10, both free.

 

Mathematics Enhancement Programme. http://www.cimt.org.uk/projects/mepres/primary/index.htm Take a look at Reception (kindergarten) level. Year 1 covers a lot of the same concepts, but in greater depth, and it's writing intensive. Plus she may find the graphic nature of it confusing at first. (Heck, a lot of moms find the graphic nature of it confusing at first.) Reception is almost writing-free - just coloring, circling, etc., and lots of conversation. If you are worried about "teaching her to count in a way that makes sense" I think Reception may be more appropriate. I am of the philosophy that there's no harm in going back and taking time to be sure of foundations. The gentle, pictorial based nature of Reception may also reduce her stress about math.

 

The other resource is The Arithmetic Primer (1901) by Frank H. Hall. https://hdl.handle.net/2027/hvd.32044097004964 It goes kind of fast into two-digit numbers after a certain point, and it includes things like halves, doubling, and area and volume almost right away, plus the language is a bit antiquated ("less" for minus, "oblong" for rectangle), so it may be more of a resource for you to read (including the introduction) and see what the approach is. You can easily translate his suggestions for informal counting in the classroom to a household context. A big part of both MEP and Hall is repeating the same fact in many contexts, including a variety of simple word problems with the same structure and answer. A lot of kids need this degree of heavy, painfully obvious (to an older person) repetition.  Your child may need Ronit Bird or other interventions but I hope the fact that there are regular curricula published (whether online today or in 1901) with "circle the third flower. circle the third teddy bear. circle the third frog" and "2 books and 2 books is how many books? 2 birds and 2 birds is how many birds? 2 cups and 2 cups is how many cups?" etc. etc. ad infinitum is somewhat reassuring to you. But whether this is an LD or not, please don't be embarrassed of where your kid is at. :grouphug:

 

I'm not familiar with the MUS blocks. I used dried beans. You can use any common objects. My instinct would be to avoid manipulatives that "do" something, like join together, at this basic level. Classically, bundling the objects together seems to be reserved for 10, to indicate that in our system of notation it is a kind of unit.

[nixpix5]

I also agree that addition facts that stick is really great and does work! You could also consider a switch to RightStart Math if you find she needs a much more concrete learning experience.

[Rockhopper]

I really like how MathSeeds focuses on developing numeracy skills. Lots of different kinds of activities, lots of different ways of seeing numbers. It's usually available on Homeschool Buyer's Co-op. I use it year-round but I think it would be good for summer practice too.

[Ausmumof3]

Does she have any other learning difficulties? It must be frustrating when her younger sibling is getting it.

 

I think with number sense issues it can be helpful to do lots and lots and lots of work with manipulatives alongside the books. Cuisenaire rods are great and you can also use Lego or duplo or beans. Check out the education unboxed videos if you haven't.

[lulalu]

RightStart Math games has a section of games specific to numeracy.

 

We just used MEP reception and it covers these areas well and it is free.