Michelle My Bell Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 Ok, I need help teaching my dd's to memorize their math facts. I need creative ideas, even flashcard games, websites, anything!!! I want to spend the next two weeks in intensive math factville. My daughters are ages 7 & 10. The 7 year old is ready, the 10 year old is behind. Don't get me wrong, she can add, but it takes her forever and I am ready to really get her moving. :auto: So ladies, I am countin' on ya! Michelle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pam Wilhelm Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 Wow!! You and I are in the same boat...... my girls are 8 and 10....... the youngest is pretty good at memorizing the facts and the older really doesn't care..... she's not as quick, etc. and really doesn't let it bother her (I, on the other hand, am freaking! LOL ). We have math games...... flashmaster........... and regular flashcards...... every now and then I've brought them out to play/work with. I need to be more consistent with all of them. Good Luck!! I'll be interested in the responses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue G in PA Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 My ds8 is doing quite well memorizing facts. He's always had a head for math. Ds9 still struggles with ALL his facts. Uses fingers for add/subtract and has to add to multiply. Forget division... We take one day off from his Saxon lessons to do drills, math games, etc. Timez Attack was a big hit at first. Sometimes we just drill flash cards (I like the triangle fact family ones), sometimes he does a drill sheet or fills in a mult. chart. As for add/subt., it's still a struggle. He knows how to do it, obviously...just doesn't seem to be able to memorize. And I keep telling him math will be sooo much easier if he does! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 I have not had much success with Calculaddars, but others here really like that approach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cornerstone Classical Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 Saxon Math does a great job teaching tricks on how to memorize math facts. First, start out with skip counting by 2's and 10's. 0 facts--easy 1 facts--easy 2facts--easy double facts-- 1+1 2+2 skip counting by 2's 3+3 4+4 5+5 and so on... OK, if they know their even number (2's) they can be drilled on double facts. Then the next step is doubles + one. 2+3 (2+2 is 4 plus one more is 5) and so on down the list. 3+4 (3+3 is 6 plus one more is 7) have them say out loud what I have in parenthsis to you. Think out loud to figure it out... then you do 10 facts--easy if they can skip count by tens. Play concentration with cards. Take out the face cards or get "War" playing cards. Flip them all face down and they play concentration and have to match up the # combos that equal 10. After a couple of days. They memorize that combos for 10 are 2-8,3-7,4-6,5-5, and so on.... Then your ready for 9's facts--take your lowest # and add 10 then subtract 1 2+9 (10+2 is 12 minus 1 is 11) Again have them say it out loud as they think it through... 3+9 (10+3 is 13 minus 1 is 12) get them to understand how to figure out the answer and then you can drill with flash cards. Then do the 1 minute timed drill. Do it daily!! Review daily!! DS is a K'er and he can do the timed drills in less than 1 minute using this approach. We haven't learned the rest yet. This is why I love Saxon because they give you little tricks to figure the answers out and then their easy to memorize... I hope this is not confusing to you. If you don't understand any of it just ask me some ?'s:):) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda...inOwasso Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 I, too, am SICK to death of math facts!! We have worked them relentlessly for 3 years now (with dd7) and she has them all down cold (+, -, X, / ). I used every means possible: Copywork, flashcards, QuarterMile Math, Math-It Game, songs, etc... and now I'm getting ready to go through the entire process again with my dd4. Here's what I've learned: small doses, done daily produces the best results. With my dd4 I give her a sheet of math facts that she must complete every day (Mon - Fri.) Her first sheet consisted of adding 1 to numbers 0 - 10. On the left-hand side of the sheet the facts were written in full. For example: 1 + 3 = 4. On the right-hand side of the sheet she copies the fact. I had her copy those daily for a couple of weeks. Then I gave her a sheet with only the questions such as 1 + 3 = ____. She has 1 minute to complete 20 problems correctly. When she's accomplished that 3 days in a row, she moves on to the next level. I know that's more than enough time, but she's working on penmanship too and I don't want her to feel so rushed that she writes sloppily. We then move on to +2 following the same routine. I only focus on +2's until she's completed them successfully, THEN I give her a mixed sheet of +1's and +2's. We call this "Minute Math" at our house and the key is consistency. Our math facts are performed daily and in addition to our daily math lesson. I just make the sheets up myself in MS Word and it's really very simple. I don't like my girls doing their facts on the computer because I'd rather them practice writing the numbers than pushing a button, but if you would prefer the computer, I recently came across an interesting program at http://www.capjax.com/ Best wishes... I know tiresome math facts can be!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josie Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 We have used this site. You can specify which facts you want flashed. I think it really helped learning the facts here. http://http://home.indy.rr.com/lrobinson/mathfacts/mathfacts.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claire Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 Math Facts the Fun Way to get the math facts down. After that, for the 10yo, develop fluency (speed combined with accuracy) -- 5 to 10 minutes per day of QuarterMile math with you doing the keyboarding. (QMM does not work nearly as well for most students if they have to keyboard for themselves.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 We use this basic formula. Math-It comes with little cards and a color-coded chart which helps with visuals (Math It is my standard for memorization). Basically, 10+s should be able to be mastered w/o trouble. Then you teach 9+s. 9+s are simply 10+s step back one. (they start off with a chart, so they can do it visually if they have to.) Once they are mastered, they do 8+s, which are simply 10+s step back 2. Then they do doubles......most kids can master doubles quickly. Then, neighbors. Neighbors come between doubles (3+4 is between 3+3 and 4+4) That leaves only 5 facts through 9+9 that have to be memorized with no easy reminder......5+3, 6+3, 6+4, 7+3, 7+4, 7+5 We use Math-It for multiplication memorization as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pata Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 Usually we study math facts Mon-Thurs and then we plan the roll and write game. Roll the dice and add up the numbers, my dd loves this game. Hope that helps! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Closeacademy Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 Some fun ideas that I read about in the book: Mathematics in Rudolf Steiner Schools by Ron Jarmon called rhythmic drill: Do something physical such as jumping on a trampoline, jumping rope, clapping, tossing/rolling a ball, tossing a bean bag, walking backwards, skipping, riding a bike, etc. And then do the math facts in a rhythmic fashion almost as a rhyming game. 1 plus 1 is 2, 1 plus 2 is 3, 1 plus 3 is 4, etc. 18 minus 9 is 9, 17 minus 9 is 8, 16 minus 9 is 7, etc. One 2 is 2, two 2s are 4, three 2s are 6, etc. 81 divided by 9 is 9, 72 divided by 9 is 8, 64 divided by 9 is 7, etc. 2 times 1 is 2, 2 times 2 is 4, 2 times 3 is 6, etc. Doing this has been really working for us and it is free.:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackie in AR Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 We tried Calculadders and Quarter Mile Math here before running across Math Shark. It has been a hit! It is pricey, but with 4 dc it has been worth the cost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Isa Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 It really helps to have children learn math strategies for the math facts and to link addition with subtraction because you'll drastically decrease the number of facts your child will have to learn. For example, if you have 10-7, you can teach it as an addition problem: "What +7 will give you 10?". If a child knows the addition facts well, this will be easy for him. If you teach subtraction this way, you've just decreased the number of math facts to learn by half! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle My Bell Posted March 17, 2008 Author Share Posted March 17, 2008 I had no idea there were so many products out there for learning addition facts! I really appreciate your helps as well. I will be exploring everything! God Bless, Michelle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Part-Time Homeschooler Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 I thought I would share what worked for us... When my ds was 6 (he's 7 now), he was struggling with his math facts. I ordered the ABeka flash cards (they go up to the 16 family for both addition and subtraction) and bought the Straight Forward Math Series workbooks by Garlic Press ($3.95 at school supply stores). By the time he finished the workbooks, ds7 could whiz through the flashcards with ease and he was actually enjoying math! When I saw how well the flashcards and workbooks helped him learn his addition & subtraction facts, I ordered both the division and multiplication flashcards and workbooks and he is memorizing those facts very quickly. I hope this helps -- good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimber Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 Math drill with a list of multiplication facts has worked wonders for us. I gave them 5 minutes or so to complete the drill with the answers. I did this everyday for about a week or two. Then I reduce the time with the fact sheet. Then I take the sheet away and increase the time again. Eventually, I decreased the time with the sheet and they did great. Big difference here. And we still review a couple of times per week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paula in MS Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 I went to the school supply store and bought a pack of blank dice. Use a black sharpie to write the numbers on the dice. If your child is learning addition by family groups, you can leave the 6's and 5's off the dice. In this case, the highest number that you would get would be 8. Later, make a new set of dice with higher numbers. Now, all you need is a board game that uses dice or a spinner. Substitute the dice that you made and have fun. Your child will get more practice if she has to add your dice as well. To practice subtraction as well, add a third die with a + or - sign. If a minus sign is rolled, subtract the smaller number from the larger. I can't guarantee you this will work because we just started it, but it is painless (unless your child is a sore loser!) I hope these instructions make sense. Have fun, Paula Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gretchen in NJ Posted March 18, 2008 Share Posted March 18, 2008 I use SuperKids Math Worksheet Creator online ( http://www.superkids.com/aweb/tools/math/index.shtml ) for free to create a Timed Test. The test consists of 25 problems in the form: a x 2 For multiplication, 'a' is equal to any number between 1 and 12. Addition 'a' is equal to any number between from 1 to 10. I let them have as much time as the need to complete the 25 problems. They can only move to the next set until they can complete the test in under 2 minutes with every problem being correct. My girls love it. Now, we are going back through our multiplication facts as review, but this time they have to be under a minute to move on to the next set. I am sure this wouldn't work for every child. My girls see as a game. I tried to make it as fun as possible and I kept the competition between themselves and the clock: not each other. They win as long as the beat their last time. Gretchen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle My Bell Posted March 18, 2008 Author Share Posted March 18, 2008 We played some games today and it went well. Thanks for your suggestions! Michelle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WTMindy Posted March 18, 2008 Share Posted March 18, 2008 has just introduced a new product that practices math fact skills called Aleks QuickTables. Here is the explanation from their website. We are pleased to announce the release of ALEKS QuickTables, a math fact mastery tool for multiplication, division, addition, and subtraction for grades 3 and up. The online program offers an interactive Student Module with ongoing assessment, learning, review, games, and visual tracking of student progress. In addition, a powerful Teacher Module allows teachers to monitor student progress, generate customized worksheets, and adjust program settings to best fit student and class needs. ALEKS QuickTables is ready for immediate use, and can be used in conjunction with ALEKS course products or by itself. Learn more about ALEKS QuickTables or sign up for a 5-day free trial. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aubrey Posted March 18, 2008 Share Posted March 18, 2008 Our problem was that *I* was inconsistent w math drills. They bore me. Really. We got Math Shark. http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/easy_find?Ntk=keywords&Ntt=mathshark&action=Search&N=0&Ne=0&event=ESRCN&nav_search=1&cms=1 It's a little hand-held video game type thing. Not very cool or anything, but for my dc who've never encountered vid games, it seems to be cool enough. Ds7 is *assigned* (or else it wouldn't work) a number to drill each AM. He's got a ws to fill out. On it, he writes the number he drilled, the date, & the time in which he completed ea round. He does one addition fact ea AM & one mult. fact. Saxon has 25-problem quizzes that it says a child should be able to complete in under 1 min. (Mine never could.) Based on that, the 10-Q rounds of math shark should be completed in under 22 seconds. When ds achieves this, he moves on to the next #. It's the only thing that's worked for us because it's timed. Ds has to do it as one of his AM chores, & he wakes up so incredibly early, that by the time I wake up, he's done MS, made his bed, gotten dressed, done reading & handwriting, & (sometimes) cleaned his bathroom. Did I mention I love it? Other than, "How were your times today?" I don't have to do *anything.*:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dayle in Guatemala Posted March 18, 2008 Share Posted March 18, 2008 We've had a TON of problems with our math facts with my ds9. I've tried it all--flashcards, computer games, worksheets, games, dice, everything! Here's what we found to help him. We went to You Tube and found the School House Rock videos and he watches them. Yesterday and today he focused on 3's and 4's. He watched each video 2 times through and then I watched it with him 2 times and we sang it together. Afterwards, I had him do only the 3 and 4 flashcards. After about 10 minutes of that, he was able to do his 3's and 4's. He's been singing the songs all morning, they are stuck in his head.:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXMomof4 Posted March 18, 2008 Share Posted March 18, 2008 The website, www.mathisfun.com has an addition trainer, and test your times tables. The addition trainer is timed, the multiplication isn't, but the repetition is great for my girls. Plus, IT"S FREE!!!! Also, Timez attack has a free basic version that just basically drills the multiplication. The girls loved it initially, but got a little bored. Good for a change though. We also do worksheets. We time how long it takes to do 25 problems, then we do it again (the same sheet) in the afternoon and they try to beat their time. We can't do this together though because whichever child has the longest time pouts for ages. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alenee Posted March 18, 2008 Share Posted March 18, 2008 http://www.mathusee.com In the left-hand column... You can choose any or all of the facts to drill. 20 problems at a time. Timed. Can be easily incorporated until you find something else (if you need to). I've also used Quartermile math which is packed with all sorts of drill as well as keyboarding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfrecore Posted March 21, 2008 Share Posted March 21, 2008 I use SuperKids Math Worksheet Creator online ( http://www.superkids.com/aweb/tools/math/index.shtml ) for free to create a Timed Test. Gretchen, this is GREAT! My kids will love this, and I'll love not having to create the sheets by hand! My kids actually LOVE tests, so this is perfect for them. I can say "if you memorize all of your math facts, you can take a test to show Dad", and they'll be all over it! (Yes, they're freaks, but what can I do? They come by it honestly, as I am a freaky test lover too!). THANKS! Danika Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
claire up north Posted March 21, 2008 Share Posted March 21, 2008 http://www.mathplayground.com/games.html This site has some fun games that my kids like. Also, I have made each kid a joke book. This is a spiral notebook. On each page, I write.... Oh, here, I'll just do one for you. ______________ (3*4) ______________(5*5) ________(3*3) _____________ (4*6) Then, at the bottom of the page, all scrambled up: 24 call 12 what 9 you 25 do The best source for lots of jokes is NOT online! I have wasted many an hour searching for a funny one! :crying:Check out some books from the library and copy a bunch in your own secret notebook. Also, kid magazines like Highlights and Ranger Rick have good ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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