Should I teach math spirally or for mastery?

[deeva58]

I'm using Math U See which is a mastery program. My daughter (age 6) is having trouble MEMORIZING her 2's addition facts, but we've been on the 2's for a month now and I'm seeing her to start to burn out.:glare:

 

One of the main aspects of Math U See is to require mastery of each step before moving to the next. After talking with the Math U See from their message boards they agree that she should master her 2's before moving to the 3's.

However, this seems such a painful process and I'm wondering if there's any way to bring fun back into math for her again?

 

Has anyone here had better success with teaching spirally than for mastery?

 

What are your thoughts about learning the math facts at this age? Is it important to have them completely memorized rotely? (She can calculate them easily in her head, but just doesn't recognize the sum automatically when I flash her a card, for example 2+8).

 

I don't want to turn her off to math with all the drill work, but she's just not memorizing them, and I think as long as she knows the concept for now, perhaps with time she'll begin to pick up on some of the facts and memorize them within the context of her learning...

Is this true? Or should I continue to drill until she does know them by memory before moving on to the 3's?

 

Thanks for your help!

[Jumping In Puddles]

You could try moving on and see what happens for a few weeks.

 

What could happen, right? The worst that could happen is that she is not getting the new concepts either! Or in a best case scenario, she would get it and now you learned something about how your daughter learns best.

 

If it is still not making things easier for her it may make it easier for you to switch her to a math program that is a better fit because you'll know that you tried it different ways and it didn't work... maybe try RS math or Singapore or Saxon?

[Julie in Austin]

My guess is that different children do better with spiral or mastery depending on how they learn. I used MUS (the old one) for a while and also MWM, but I found that my child could "master" something and then draw a complete blank on it months later. So we switched to Horizons years ago and it has worked very well for my two.

 

Good luck!

[TracyR]

Boy that's a tough one . To me it depends on the child . My oldest works with math very well . Grasps the concepts quickly . We are using Calvert math program (yuck we're ditching it after this year ) . But I chose math programs for her and we move on and the mastery seems to work well for her .

 

Then there is my 2nd daughter . Mastery DOESNOT by any stretch of the imagination work for her at all . She needs continual review of concepts until it finally sticks . She learns best with spiral/incremental approach . Period . I used Saxon math with her a few years ago and it worked so well for her that actually she learned her math facts MUCH better then her older sister did . She ran circles around her sister and was more proficient in math and was able to complete it faster with more accuracy then her older sister did using while using mastery . Needless to say I stopped using Saxon and went to using Calvert and regret it ever since with her . Everyday is a battle and I hear how she feels stupid and the tears flow . She has long forgotten most of her math facts and its just been torture for the both of us ever since .

 

This is my thought on the matter and you can take it or leave it .

Mastery works well with children who grasp concept well . Only because it teaches one particular subject then leaves it alone .

The spiral/incremental approach is best suited for children who need review and learn better in smaller chunks .

 

What you could possibly do is to stop for a bit , move on to the threes and then bring back those twos every now and then . But if she is possibly like my 2nd child that maynot work well . Because if its not worked on then its forgotten .

I know I had listened to the advice of let's move on and the light bulb will turn on eventually and with math , at least for my girls , this isn't the case . Even with my math bright 10yr old . Its one of those subjects that really needs to be practiced . But you don't need to do it ad nauseum either .

 

I've used Saxon math , and am planning on trying Christian Light math as this is like Saxon but in workbook form and introduces higher math concepts earlier on ( which Saxon doesn't quite do ) . So I'm getting the best of both worlds .

[sweetbaby]

We have tried both and my children work well with mastery. Like the pp stated, it really depends on your child's learning style. If she enjoys have new information thrown into the mix while reviewing the old, she may love the spiral method. If it appears that she has mastered certain concepts then I would skip the extra practice and move on. If she continues to get bored, you could give spiral a try. But I would skip those mastered concepts and just move onto new topics in order to save my dollars. Just MO.

[Tiffani]

One thing I started doing this year is having my boys watch dvd, do pages A,B and then D and E (on separate days of course) and then the test. The D, E and F pages have more review than A,B or C.

 

With my 2nd ds he needs more review so I'll have him practice the drills on the mathusee website. But then there have been times that we've just "moved on" simply b/c I think he'll get it later. This is our 8th year using MUS. It's been great for us!

[Willow]

We also have 1 dc in Epsilon without having mastered tables facts. I would move on slowly. I also require drill daily, separate from Math lessons. So with us every day starts with drill. (called that, not 'math') later we will do the math lesson with tables chart in hand. He is getting better, slowly.

[Rosy]

We've had this issue with phonics...my daughter went very methodically through learning letter names, then sounds, then blends, then sounding out words. My son is the opposite...it took him forever to learn letter names, but he could hear sounds way better than his sister. We're using Phonics Pathways but we've had to do a lot of skipping around and integrating books he wasn't totally ready for but could struggle through, just to keep things interesting.

 

All that to say, I agree with the others who have said some kids just don't do mastery the same as others. :)

[Targhee]

No matter which you choose (spiral or mastery) the problem with learning math facts may just be your child's learning style. Have you tried different methods for memorization? My DD learns VERY differently from DS. She can memorize things I tell her. DS needs something besides me telling. Sometimes songs work. Sometimes clapping. I've heard of people having their kids say math facts and such while jumping on the trampoline. Some people just memorize from rote better. I learned a lot, and have much more success with teaching my DS (who is very different from me) after reading about learning styles.

 

The program that will work best will also depend on her learning style. I would really HATE having do something like Saxon. I like to master and move on. But DD likes to review things because it builds confidence. I hope you find a great program to work for your daughter (and you). :)

[Suzannah]

I realize this wasn't the question, but I teach my kiddos even numbers (which then becomes the 2s addition facts) with the little cheer:

 

Two, four, six, eight,

Who do we appreciate?

 

Once that's set firmly, we go on to say the other numbers next:

 

Ten, Twelve, Fourteen (clap)

Sixteen, Eighteen, Twenty (clap)

 

And at the same time we review it on number charts and write the numbers and notice that the 0, 2, 4, 6, 8 pattern just keeps repeating.

 

HTH. Good luck in your search.

[thundersweet]

We are using MUS Alpha now with my 6yo dd. I went against the advice to stay until my dd memorized the facts cold. It was taking her too long and she was getting bored and saying she hated MUS. I just purchased this http://www.susancanthony.com/Books/add.html after seeing it recommended here. I set up the folder as described in the instructions and gave dd her first addition worksheet. The kid loved it and wanted to do another one. lol I didn't let her because I want to just do it 5 minutes a day and I don't want to bore her too soon with it.

 

I also thought of switching math programs but MUS makes it easy for me to teach so I feel like I need to stick with it. Mom needs the teacher. lol Dd watches the dvd with me and it really helps her to understand. She gets it all its just the memorization part that she is slow with. It's funny though because she can memorize poetry like no tomorrow. It must be a different part of the brain. lol

 

My plan is to continue with Alpha until we finish and then spend the summer really learning those facts. Then start Beta in the fall.

 

HTH,

Sandy

[MIch elle]

nt

[April in NC]

Mastery or spiral? I say "yes"! I've never been quite sure why it has to be all or none with regards to those approaches. Mastery is wonderful, in that you get in depth with a particular area, and really understand it. But it has a terrible drawback, in that if you are stuck, or developmentally unready for a concept, you just sit there and burn out on it.

 

Spiral is great for reviewing and building gradually on concepts introduced earlier, but skipping from topic to topic can be very confusing to some children, inhibiting the development of a deep understanding.

 

So, usually I like to begin with mastery, but if I find developmental unreadiness or we get stuck after an appropriate amount of time, then I either:

• a) try a different approach to that topic (games instead of flashcards, for example)
  
• or b) move on to another topic for a while and come back after a bit of a break.

I learned this after I let one of my children get stuck for 4 months trying to master reading short a cvc words with a quick enough speed for a mastery based phonics program we were using. We go nowhere for 4 months, but the very minute I switched to a different approach (a colorful internet based reading program called Headsprout) it was like a switch was turned. I don't think the first program was bad, I just felt that my daughter either needed a break or a change of approach.

 

If I were you, I might consider getting some games, like the math card games kit from RightStart, and play them over the summer. (My kids have "accidentally" learned almost all of their math addition facts with no drill at all, just by playing the RightStart games and working with the abacus.) I also agree with the person who suggested practicing skip counting by 2's. That is how RightStart teaches adding the 2's, as well. You just practice counting even numbers, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 for a few days, then 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 for a few days, and then you can ask things like "What's the next even number after 2?" "4". "What's the next odd number after 7?" "9" Then, after a couple of days of this you mention that you are adding 2.

 

Hope some of the ideas you get help! I know how frustrating it can be to be stuck, and not know if you just need to stick with it or try something else!:grouphug:

[Ellie]

I'm not convinced that it's spiral or mastery--words which none of us used even 10 years ago, BTW--as much as it is presentation.

[deeva58]

If I were you, I might consider getting some games, like the math card games kit from RightStart, and play them over the summer. (My kids have "accidentally" learned almost all of their math addition facts with no drill at all, just by playing the RightStart games and working with the abacus.)

 

Great idea! I am Googling Right Start now. i think taking a break is something we absolutely need. By the time we come back to it she'll probably be fresh enough to start this again.

[deeva58]

Thank you all for your wonderful advice and input!

I am taking each of your replies into careful consideration.

I do think I will move on to some other math facts this summer (we h.s. year round) and just take it easy, picking up on some measuring, money, and telling time review-- some of which is not expressly taught in MUS.

Then I'll come back to the 2's and 3's and so forth in the Fall.

It may be that my daughter's learning style would be better suited for Spiral programs than mastery-- but we still absolutely love MUS and want to continue using it as our home base for math.

She's a combination of visual and auditory learner, and can learn just about anything with great understanding by visualization on a marker board, so we'll try that too for mastery. Meanwhile, I won't concern myself so much about mastery of 2's right now, take a break, and come back in the Fall.

Thanks again for all of your input!

[lfong]

I'm in the same boat with my dd who is 6 1/2 is having trouble with mastery. I'm leaning towards a spiral method for her and was contemplating Saxon. A friend reminded me that it's more important that they get the concept at this age rather than rote memory. I happen to have Singapore math which I didn't use before because my daughter didn't take to it at first.

 

After a morning of crying and staying that it's too hard, I just pulled it out and we started working on the subtraction facts and she seems to take more to it than MUS. I'm going to try it for awhile and see how it goes. There's more color in the text book and different activities to use math concepts. For example, there's a coloring activity where she is the math fact and color in the answer per the corresponding color of the answer. She seems to be ok with it so we'll see. All the best in finding the best solution for your dd.

 

lfong