1st grade math help.

[indigomama]

DS is in 1st grade this year, and doing well. However, we are having problems with math. We are using MM, and while we really like it, he is struggling with remembering place values for ones and tens and with adding and subtracting within 0-100. Everything else he does fine with, telling time, shapes, measuring,etc.

 

We'll read the intro about how to do the problem, do several together and he'll do fine, but when I ask him to do a few problems on his own, he can't.

 

Are there any suggestions for some other ways to teach place values and adding/subtracting double digit numbers. I would like to work on this over the summer before we move on in MM?

 

TIA:001_smile:

[HiddenJewel]

One thing you might do is look ahead to the MM2 table of contents. We are almost finished with MM1 and I am getting the feeling that MM1 is more of an introduction and that the topics will be covered in more mastery form in MM2. I have yet to confirm that with Maria so it is just a suspicion.

[Snowfall]

Place value cards!!! They really, really helped DD learn place value. You can order them from Rainbow Resource or Lakeshore Learning. One of them has colored ones that go up to the millions. I think that's Lakeshore. Let's see...

 

RR has the plain white ones: http://rainbowresource.com/product/sku/025803/1301888284-625195

 

LL has the colored ones: http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/seo/ca|searchResults~~p|LL982~~.jsp

 

We have two sets of the plain white ones and they worked fine. You build the numbers by layering, which helps a child really understand what place value is all about. So 12 would be a 2 on top of the 0 in a 10 - 1 ten and 2 ones.

[indigomama]

One thing you might do is look ahead to the MM2 table of contents. We are almost finished with MM1 and I am getting the feeling that MM1 is more of an introduction and that the topics will be covered in more mastery form in MM2. I have yet to confirm that with Maria so it is just a suspicion.

 

I haven't looked ahead, but I will thanks. I'm just afraid to move forward without his being totally comfortable doing this years stuff, YKWIM.

[indigomama]

Place value cards!!! They really, really helped DD learn place value. You can order them from Rainbow Resource or Lakeshore Learning. One of them has colored ones that go up to the millions. I think that's Lakeshore. Let's see...

 

RR has the plain white ones: http://rainbowresource.com/product/sku/025803/1301888284-625195

 

LL has the colored ones: http://www.lakeshorelearning.com/seo/ca|searchResults~~p|LL982~~.jsp

 

We have two sets of the plain white ones and they worked fine. You build the numbers by layering, which helps a child really understand what place value is all about. So 12 would be a 2 on top of the 0 in a 10 - 1 ten and 2 ones.

 

Thank you! Those look great, I will put those on my list of things to order.

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

Do you think he needs more of a spiral program so he does not forget the skills? If thats the case I would recommend Horizons :001_smile:

[indigomama]

Do you think he needs more of a spiral program so he does not forget the skills? If thats the case I would recommend Horizons :001_smile:

I don't thinks it's a case of forgetting, I don't think he's fully understanding the concept in the first place. We both like MM and I would not like to change programs completely if I don't have to, I was hoping I could find ways to address the specific problem areas over the summer so we could move into MM2 next fall.

[Snowfall]

Do you have base ten blocks or an abacus? If you have any kind of base ten manipulative, you can make a number with the manipulative, then have him build it with the place value cards and vice versa.

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

I don't thinks it's a case of forgetting, I don't think he's fully understanding the concept in the first place. We both like MM and I would not like to change programs completely if I don't have to, I was hoping I could find ways to address the specific problem areas over the summer so we could move into MM2 next fall.

 

 

I am not familiar with Math Mammoth but I know they have topical books, do they have any to cover place value that you could do over the summer?

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

Here, I found this, maybe this could help

[SnegurochkaL]

Place value cards!!!

 

I second it. I did RS math level A with my daughter and it helped her a lot with place value. We played a lot of games described at Mathcard games book.

Here is one of them:

Place value cards face up and call different numbers. Yor child will need to build them out of cards he sees in front of him. If you ask to make number "25" you child would need to take 2 cards: "20" and 5"" in order to make a 25. Since "ones" cards are twice shorter than "tens" cards so your child will place a "ones" card over "ones" place on "tens" card to make "25"( in case of "25" he will put number "5" over "0" in number "20"). We played this game several times and my child understood place value.

 

You can make place value cards yourself if you need them quickly.

Edited April 4, 2011 by SneguochkaL

[indigomama]

Thanks everyone! There have been some great suggestions for place value, all of which I'm making note of so we can practice over the summer.

 

What about adding and subtracting 0-100. I'm wondering if flashcards of addition problems 0-9 would help. Maybe if he knew smaller combos by memory that would help with the larger numbers?

[HiddenJewel]

I don't thinks it's a case of forgetting, I don't think he's fully understanding the concept in the first place. We both like MM and I would not like to change programs completely if I don't have to, I was hoping I could find ways to address the specific problem areas over the summer so we could move into MM2 next fall.

 

My dd7 isn't totally grasping some of it either. But I see understanding is coming so we are keeping plugging. We do use an abacus.

[HiddenJewel]

:)

Edited April 5, 2011 by HiddenJewel

[SnegurochkaL]

 

What about adding and subtracting 0-100. I'm wondering if flashcards of addition problems 0-9 would help. Maybe if he knew smaller combos by memory that would help with the larger numbers?

 

I don't like flash cards for math myself and I didn't use it with my daughter. We played a Trading game. In my opinion, a child needs to understand how math works, otherwise it will not work for such young age.

 

Trading game. We prepared small squires cut out of grid paper. One large squire had 100 small squires in it. So, we had 20 large squires with only "one" small colored squire on each of them and another 10 large squires with a row of 10 small squires colored on them. Totally you will need 30 large squires. You also might want to add one more large squire with all 100 small squires colored representing a number" one hundred" . So you start trading:) For example you want your child to add 25 and 67. Your child collects 2 cards with a colored row of 10 small squires and 5 cards with small colored squires and put them on his right. On his left he collects 6 cards with a row of 10 colored squires and 7 cards with "one" colored squire on each of them. So ask your child to put the rest of remaining squires aside. Now ask him to combine squires on the right with squires on the left and count how many "10" squires and "one" squires are there. He will find 8 squires with a row of 10 small squires colored and 12 cards with one small colored squire. Ask him to trade 10 colored small squire cards into a card with a row of ten squires colored. This way he will see the process of turning 10 ones into a "ten" or "one tens". and he will see the product of his number manipulations by combining 2 groups into one. After he counts his large squires he will receive a result of "92".

 

I hope it will help you. It did help my child to understand the concept and she was able to trade in a range of 1000 withing a week. It also works for small numbers under 10. For memorizing facts up to 10 we use a song from RightStart level A " Yellow is the sun". Here is the link where you can see a music sheet or listen to it.

http://www.alabacus.com/pageView.cfm?pageID=309

Edited April 4, 2011 by SneguochkaL

[HiddenJewel]

Thanks everyone! There have been some great suggestions for place value, all of which I'm making note of so we can practice over the summer.

 

What about adding and subtracting 0-100. I'm wondering if flashcards of addition problems 0-9 would help. Maybe if he knew smaller combos by memory that would help with the larger numbers?

 

He will learn the math facts more in MM2.

[boscopup]

Have you played any of the games recommended at the beginning of the chapter? This is something you definitely want to work on now, as it's only quickly reviewed in grade 2 (we're in 2A now).

 

I think my son learned place value via Saxon K and 1's meeting books at school. They use money to count the days of school and such, and worked a lot on place value, as far as I can tell.

 

Definitely throw in some base ten blocks and/or an abacus to work the problems with (abacus would be better for the bigger numbers) so he can see what's going on. It may also be a developmental thing that will click at some point with maturity, but just in case, I'd continue working on it.