I'm ruining math for ds (6 y.o.) help!

[chelsmm]

I'm not sure how it all happened, but ds hates math. He is smart and grasps concepts quickly. He has been dabbling in negative numbers for a year now. He likes to figure things out occasionally on his own. But as for learning any math, he resists. It always ends I a struggle and a fight.

We are doing Singapore 2a. It's not too hard, though he says it is. Some days we do intensive practice 1b. He says that's too hard too. But he can do it if he wants.

I scribe for him. His handwriting is illegible.
Math is making me want to stop home schooling him. But out of both of my kids, he's the one who needs to be homeschooled. He probably has ADHD. He has a weak core and poor fine motor. He has hyper mobile joints. I let him bop around for much of his school work. He goes to OT and Speech. He would do horribly in school because of his constant motion. So I need this to work for him.

I'm not sure what to do. Can I teach him math in a different way?

He has been doing math facts- addition- on the computer, and he likes that. He hates subtraction. He gets it most of the time, but sometimes I wonder if he doesn't get it and that's why he gets upset by it.

Any suggestions would be great.

[jennynd]

Work the question on white board. Sit on the carpet instead of by the table. That makes it less work like. DD is a young 6 and I will not have her sit by the table. ADHD or not, 6 years can't sit very long. Also try not to go over 15/20 mins. If needed, break to 2 sessions.

[chelsmm]

Ok. I need to back off a bit. Ds was flying along so well that maybe I got over excited and pushed too hard.

[mommymonster]

Just something to think about: if he's good at thinking things through and reasoning/logic, but getting him to do the math is difficult, he might be dealing with a vision issue. 

 

My son stalled on SM 2A with double-digit addition / subtraction because he (i) needed glasses and (ii) has a vision processing disorder. We ended up getting an in-depth eval with an optometrist (COVD.org) -- it is different than a regular eye-doctor appointment and is much more thorough. We did 6 months of vision therapy, and DS is doing much better with math. 

 

My son also had a hard time with how "busy" SM's pages are -- too many pictures, too much stuff. My son pitched quite a fit if I asked him to even *look* at the book. In any case, you might also want to try getting a graph paper notebook with 1/2 in squares. Talk about the math problem, and then write it out for him -- one digit in each box. It helps to line things up, especially for those kids with illegible handwriting, and makes it easier to "see" carrying and borrowing, when the time comes. 

 

Best of luck.

[blondeviolin]

Step back and let him work through something like Miquon...

OR

Trudge through the rest of SM 2 ad jump into Beast Academy next year.

We're doing both with my do-it-myselfer.

[AimeeM]

For a child who naturally grasps concepts, singapore may seem like overkill (the direct instruction of concepts). Have you thought about a more traditional program like CLE? My son (good in math; grasps concepts naturally) is doing very well with it, using Miquon as a supplement.

[MotherOfBoys]

You describe my son to a T. I started doing a few problems on the white board. I use manipulative s for a couple problems even though he doesn't need them, just to keep his hands busy. I also realized that too much repetition made him get more wrong. I switched from saxon to mm so I could move at his faster pace. I keep the concepts going forward on the front, one page a day. He doesn't need the process broken down as much as mm does or I start to lose his attention. I write on the back a review of the stuff he doesn't have cemented yet.

 

For example, I don't skip word problems but I do skip most first pages of the lesson because I can explain it on the board while doing the second page on the board. Then I print the third page, last page of the lesson and write like five or seven review problems on the back. The review on back can be done first or last or later in the day, depending on his attention span that day. The lesson takes about 15 mins with five being in his chair.

[73349]

First, I'd make sure you're not spending too much time on it (for DS I keep math to probably 5-10 minutes a day).

 

We did a couple of Miquon books between SM 1 and 2. They're fun, hands-on (cuisenaire rods) and have no pre-set lesson length. We are going to start SM 2a soon using a soroban--I wonder if your DS would like it instead of concentrating on the book?

 

 

[Peplophoros]

I think all kids this age go through phases--this is the first time he's had to deal with something that he has to work hard for, and it's not fun.  Both my kids went through "I hate math periods," but they changed once confidence grew.  I agree, keep math SHORT at this age--like reading, I would only do 10-15 min. a day.  You're way ahead academically, but you have to resist pushing him past is maturity level (I speak from experience--we also did 2A and B when ds was 6). 

 

 

 

[chelsmm]

Thanks for all the replies. I am goin to back off. That shouldn't be hard because the weather is finally nice.

I am interested in c rods. I think ds could benefit from them. He gets complicated ideas and can do harder math, but he is weak with simple facts.

I will think about a vision test with a specialist. He is a big time auditory learner, but that could certainly be because he is weak with vision. He doesn't seem to have trouble reading though. Any thoughts on that?

Graph paper is a great idea. I currently do all of the math writing. There's no way he could line up the numbers properly at this point. But I'll try graph paper in the future.

If I decided to use c rods, how do I know what to do? Is minqon the program that uses them?

[shmcath]

Perhaps Singapore Math may not be the right math at this time.  I read somewhere (maybe Well-Trained mind -book) that SM is more logic and may be started later on. You might want to try Saxon Math.  It does repeat, but maybe that would be beneficial.  Maybe a little computer time? XL or another program?  I have let my daughter (1st grade, 6 yrs old) write problems on the white board herself.   I have one that I can take anywhere in the house, not a huge one on the wall.  Good luck!! 

[Guest]

TouchMath saved it for my oldest and helped him understand.

 

CLE Math and R&S might be better otpions than Singapore. Of the 2 we really super LOVE CLE.

[73349]

If I decided to use c rods, how do I know what to do? Is minqon the program that uses them?

 

Look at the videos on EducationUnboxed.com for some ideas to get you started. And yes, it's Miquon that uses them.

[chelsmm]

Thanks.  I'll look at those videos.

 

I have let up a ton for this week.  We have done no formal math.  He has offered to do 50 flash cards online (addition) each day though.  And today he asked to do multiplication, so he did some practice with the 4 tables (his choice).  He also counted all of his money.  I was amazed that he got it right because when he counts the manipulative cubes he is careless and gets it wrong a lot.  He counted out $27.68 in change and got it right!  So I think we will be ok.  I'm going to go easy for the rest of this year and see how things go in the fall.  Thanks for all of the suggestions.  I will keep them for the fall.