Help with math, please!

[homemama]

My son 9 years is most likely an undiagnosed ADHD. I don't consider him extreme, but hyper nonetheless. I still have some unresolved issues concerning math with him. He gets any concept that can be worked out, but the memorizing of math facts is hard for him. He can get the add./subt., but is slow to answer (usually just the harder ones). He's beginning to get mult., but there again, slow to answer.

 

I don't notice any visual/auditory or any other issues outside of being on the hyper side of life.

We are using Saxon math 3 and he likes this, but I do think he needs extra review on the facts, even though Saxon does this daily. Mega amounts would probably be good for him. Would you consider switching to a mastery type like R&S? I have the 3rd grade R&S math on the shelf. It's almost like he needs to do lots of practice daily or he gets really rusty. It's almost impossible to do extensive practice with Saxon as the lessons get extremely long. Just looking for math ideas!

Thanks in advance for the help!:bigear:

 

homemama

[siloam]

I tried using flash cards, Calculaders and Flashmaster, but the one that clicked was the Right Start math games. You don't have to use the whole program to use the game package. The manual is broken down by operation (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, money, time, fractions, percents, etc...)

 

Heather

[homemama]

Heather,

:iagree:

I'm so glad you reminded me of this. I actually have this on the shelf and forgot all about it!:tongue_smilie: DS loves games also. I sometimes forgot how much curriculum and etc. that I do have, LOL!

 

However, I'm still considering the R&S also. I'm just thinking that maybe spending more time on 1 thing at a time might do the trick. Math has always been our hardest subject! I'm thinking of just going through the book and trying to figure out where he would need to start. Any input about the R&S math would be appreciated! I'm going through curriculum confusion right now!

 

homemama

ds 9

[siloam]

Heather,

:iagree:

I'm so glad you reminded me of this. I actually have this on the shelf and forgot all about it!:tongue_smilie: DS loves games also. I sometimes forgot how much curriculum and etc. that I do have, LOL!

 

However, I'm still considering the R&S also. I'm just thinking that maybe spending more time on 1 thing at a time might do the trick. Math has always been our hardest subject! I'm thinking of just going through the book and trying to figure out where he would need to start. Any input about the R&S math would be appreciated! I'm going through curriculum confusion right now!

 

homemama

ds 9

I hear you! My oldest finally finished the main portion of RS (she still does Geometry once a week). I bought her Kinetic pre-algebra and it has been a dismal failure. I believe largely because she just doesn't have fractions, percents, decimals and such down in her head. She can do them most of the time, breezed through them when she first learned them, but she has random recall problems when doing these sort of problems. Especially if she hasn't seen them recently. The other day she multiplied two fractions and gave me an answer with a fraction and a decimal. :D I know she knows it isn't right, and she rolled her eyes and told me she doesn't know where her head was when she wrote it, but it all points to needing to do a lot more tedious repetitive work on math skills.

 

Right now she can do the pre-algebra work about 50% of the time. The rest of the time she short circuits. She is overwhelmed and can't set up the problem, she can set up the problem but can't remember order of operations, or she does remember order of operations and makes a miscellaneous math error. Ugh! Her ability to pull it all together and get to the right answer is so shot gun that she is going to end up with more gaps if she continues.

 

Thus I think I am going to step her back to Lial's Basic College Math. It has a lot of repetitive practice. Poor girl cried when I told her that was necessary. She doesn't want to, but in the end she knows it is what she needs, so she agreed to it.

 

Sigh....

 

Heather

[Ottakee]

We tried R&S and ACE but REALLY liked Christian Light Education for math. My daughter learned SO much with that program. It taught things in tiny steps so that suddenly she was doing more advanced things with realizing how "hard" the math was. They also have daily review and daily speed drills (we just did it without timing them) and it was GREAT.

 

Have him take the placement test though has it is more advanced and he might need to go back to 2 or start at the beginning of 3.

[homemama]

Thanks Ottakee, I will look into the CLE. I'm beginning to think we may never find our fit for math!:tongue_smilie: However, I really think that the memorizing facts is our most difficult problem. He also gets frustrated easily, so that doesn't help.

 

Thanks for the suggestions Ladies! I do appreiciate it!;)

 

homemama

[Tiramisu]

I hear you! My oldest finally finished the main portion of RS (she still does Geometry once a week). I bought her Kinetic pre-algebra and it has been a dismal failure. I believe largely because she just doesn't have fractions, percents, decimals and such down in her head. She can do them most of the time, breezed through them when she first learned them, but she has random recall problems when doing these sort of problems. Especially if she hasn't seen them recently. The other day she multiplied two fractions and gave me an answer with a fraction and a decimal. :D I know she knows it isn't right, and she rolled her eyes and told me she doesn't know where her head was when she wrote it, but it all points to needing to do a lot more tedious repetitive work on math skills.

 

Right now she can do the pre-algebra work about 50% of the time. The rest of the time she short circuits. She is overwhelmed and can't set up the problem, she can set up the problem but can't remember order of operations, or she does remember order of operations and makes a miscellaneous math error. Ugh! Her ability to pull it all together and get to the right answer is so shot gun that she is going to end up with more gaps if she continues.

 

Thus I think I am going to step her back to Lial's Basic College Math. It has a lot of repetitive practice. Poor girl cried when I told her that was necessary. She doesn't want to, but in the end she knows it is what she needs, so she agreed to it.

 

Sigh....

 

Heather

 

random recall problems .... Very good description. We have this with one dd, too: Slow recall and occasional and unexplained lack of recall. Ugghhh! CLE works best with her. Ideally, I'd like something with fewer problems each day, though. Math always takes her a really long time. For the high school years, we may go with TT.

[jewell]

Teaching Textbooks? Math U See? Quartermile math for drill?

[homemama]

Well, I just typed a post and lost it.:tongue_smilie:

 

TT4 did not appeal to him, even though he could manage the material pretty well. Might be worth another shot!

 

As far as math fact practice, this kid CAN NOT be timed! :tongue_smilie: He will cry and freeze up. Can't handle the stress, even if he can answer the problems. All is fine, if you don't time him.:lol:

We usually use MUS drill practice for this and it works pretty well.

 

Still thinking and pondering... Thanks for the ideas!

 

homemama

[TAKlinda]

Teaching math needs to be done as a system where possible. *Students with learning difficulties have trouble memorizing math facts. *Use related facts and regrouping for addition, the math ladder for subtraction. *Multiplication and division are easily taught as a system, eg., times 4 is a double plus a double, divided by 8 cut the number in half three times.

 

Linda