MATH-- Please help

[pjssully]

I have written here before but i need to hear again what people who have had math frustration with their child have done. My 9 year old girl seems to have lots of problems with math--i plan to have her tested but my husband said to be careful not to label her. We used Saxon in 2nd grade and she did well until the end of the year, which she was then bored and cried. However, she did learn ALOT that year. The next year we did Singapore and she did great until the mental math in 2B. She also began to have Obssessive compulsive thoughts and was put on medicatioin. Since then, math has become a four letter word!!!!!! Sometimes she remembers her math facts, sometimes, she doesn't. She seems to understand the process of math-word problems, etc. but has a hard time with math facts so moving on to multiplcation/division long problems is almost useless. Do i go back and start with right start and level B which we have been doing, do i go back to singapore level 1, to i start with saxon 3 since she did well with that before? Any help

pam

[lwilliams1922]

mathusee has really helped my dd/12

 

She just never seemed to come close to have any idea about fractions.

now that she uses the visual aids in mathusee she is answering the questions!

 

I asked her how she felt about getting all the questions right compared to all those years of getting every fraction problem wrong.

 

She said it was like a foreign language before.

 

bright kid, just can't 'picture' how math works

[PeterPan]

So you have RightStart B and are using it with her right now? How is that going? You shouldn't buy another math curriculum on top of that, as it's a good one (no need to waste money). But you may need to tweak how you're using it with her, given her age.

[VaKim]

I know this is not popular here, but I give my dd9 a multiplication chart and just keep moving on as long as she can do the work. She has memorized many facts simply by looking them up often in the process of doing her lessons.

 

My oldest dd was not as good at math, so we just backed up and slowed down and let her do "easy" work until she was ready. About the time she was 11 or 12, something sort of clicked and she was ready to move on. Sometimes they are just not ready.

[Tabrett]

Start RightStart B. The creator of RightStart has an article about kids needing to use manipulative a lot longer that we as adults think they should be used and that we adults remove the manipulative before kids are ready. She states that kids will just stop using manipulative when they are ready. I would take this to mean that "knowing" math facts is not as important as "understanding" how to find out the answer. Do RightStart and let her have the abacus until she stops using it herself. Don't worry about her "knowing" the answer. Worry about making sure she know how to "find" the answer.

[Kathleen in VA]

This is an article about teaching math to young children:

 

http://www.triviumpursuit.com/blog/2007/04/03/teaching-math/

 

This is a description of a book called Taking the Frustration Out of Math by Mary Hood:

 

http://www.theoldschoolhousestore.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=78&products_id=342

 

I also second VaKim's idea of letting your daughter look at a multiplication table. My ds12 had problems and I just told him to look up the facts as he needed them. I think he got tired of having to look at the chart and just memorized them for convenience's sake. I also switched him out of Saxon 5/4 and bought TT5. He is behind in math, but he LOVES math now, which, at this stage of the game, is more important to me than whether or not he is where he "ought" to be.

[Missouri Mama]

It sounds like your dd may benefit most from a manipulative based approach. I think it would be most helpful for you to learn how to present the various concepts to her in different ways & stick to one math curriculum or supplement a main math course with another. All of the switching may create more confusion & frustration. If the purpose of having your dd tested is so that the tester can offer you strategies to help your dd be successful in the learning process, that will be a win-win situation for everyone. But if you are simply given a diagnosis (label) & no real help, what's the point? Is it possible that your daughter's medication is affecting her mental processing?

[LanainMA]

I have written here before but i need to hear again what people who have had math frustration with their child have done. My 9 year old girl seems to have lots of problems with math--i plan to have her tested but my husband said to be careful not to label her. We used Saxon in 2nd grade and she did well until the end of the year, which she was then bored and cried. However, she did learn ALOT that year. The next year we did Singapore and she did great until the mental math in 2B.

 

 

I had this same experience with my dd. She did Saxon 2 and she did well (although had a hard time with math fact retention) but I tried Singapore the next year because I thought Saxon was so boring. It was a disaster. I wasn't wise enough as a new homeschooler to see that she needed the constant repetition that Saxon gives. If I were you, I would do Saxon 3 and modify the amount of problems she does or how fast she goes through it. Don't worry about accomplishing a full lesson each day. Then the following year, I would try TT4. It's a lot like Saxon, but it's just not as much.

 

Good luck in finding what works.

[Denise in NE]

I think you need to move her to something like Math U See, and have her work at her own pace. Don't push.

 

I can relate to your situation. We had similar problems with our youngest daughter.

 

You can email me privately if you like.

 

Denise in NE

[In The Great White North]

She also began to have Obssessive compulsive thoughts and was put on medicatioin. Since then, math has become a four letter word!!!!!! Sometimes she remembers her math facts, sometimes, she doesn't. She seems to understand the process of math-word problems, etc. but has a hard time with math facts so moving on to multiplcation/division long problems is almost useless

 

Is there a connection here? What are the possible side effects of the medications? Does it affect memory, cognitive ability, ability to focus,etc? IS there an alternative medication she could try? Have you discussed this with her doctor?

[JudyJudyJudy]

Is there a connection here? What are the possible side effects of the medications? Does it affect memory, cognitive ability, ability to focus,etc? IS there an alternative medication she could try? Have you discussed this with her doctor?

These would be my concerns as well.

[Misty]

If I remember right, you just started using RightStart B a week or 2 ago.. I would just give it more time... All 3 of my daughters have OCD (though only one has a formal diagnosis) and one of them does have a very hard time with math. She is not on any meds right now. It could just be the way they are wired. Mine is extremely talented with languages/verbal expression, etc. She also has Sensory Integration Dysfunction, Synesthesia, and delayed fine motor skills along with a gifted IQ (just to complicate it even more, lol). Math is sort of like a foreign language to her. I think she may have dyscalculia, but I haven't had her tested. She is doing well with RightStart, we are plugging along and getting caught back up to where she needs to be.. At this time, my main focus is on my 2 smallest children who are showing signs of autism so as long as she is doing well with RightStart, I am satisfied and will not pursue the dyscalculia diagnosis. She does have trouble memorizing anything with numbers still (but has a near photographic memory with words, if that makes sense) but that is why RightStart is so perfect for her.. They teach her strategies so that when her memory fails her, she can still figure it out VERY quickly.

 

I would stick with RightStart. It has served my daughter well.

[prairiegirl]

We have problems with math here as well. We use RS and I think this is the best program that fits our needs. If you, indeed, have only just started it, give it more time.

 

Also, we sprinkle in living math with RS. I thnk the two complement each other very nicely. I use the suggestions and book list from living math The living math aspect has helped to take the stress out of math that a formal program was doing. My dd is able to see now that math can be fun. The phobia is lessening.