Vent Post - My kids have forgotten how to do math...

[J&JMom]

I am having one of those weeks where I want my kids' education to be someone else's problem.  This week is a review week for them which involves testing how much they have retained over the quarter and year thus far. Well, my 5th and 7th graders have bombed.  My oldest who is in AoPS PreAlgebra seriously forgot how to solve  .024 x 0.0042.  Really. The same kid who scored 88%ile in math ITBS last year. Ugh.  I don't know what to do. And don't get me started on grammar and writing!

We have, at least until this dreadful week, done our due diligence in teaching, review, and testing, but, obviously, I was mistaken. I have purchased IEW student intensive and Fix It grammar to hopefully rectify their atrocious writing, but I don't know what to do with math.  Despite my oldest son's professed love of the AoPS program, he is not retaining and/or learning the material, so I need to scramble to find another program to catch up by year's end. Spiral and more spiral with more practice problems per day will be the rule.

Well, thanks for listening. I knew these weeks would happen, it is just so hard when you are in the midst of them.  

Edited January 20, 2016 by J&JMom

[SporkUK]

:grouphug: We've totally had weeks like this. 

[Tress]

:grouphug: I'm having the same kind of week, so I know how it feels.

[RootAnn]

I have so been there! Usually, that's a week when we've just come back from a break. It seems like their brain broke open & emptied out.

 

I wouldn't toss everything over one bad week, but it is good to reevaluate where you've been having on-going problems.  :grouphug:

[Loesje22000]

In the Netherlands they have beside the 'regular' math for middle & highschool also a kind of ' arithmetic' sequence for these years to keep the basic calculations fresh.

We used that besides AoPS Pre - A and are still using now along Intro A.

 

I don't know much about American math texts, but maybe something like the 'Key to ...' serie might help?

 

Please don't change a math text if dc like it.

Motivation is very helpful in any subject, but especially in math.

[J&JMom]

OP here. My faith in my kids has been restored.  We reviewed and reassessed and they turned out to not be as far behind as originally feared. In fact, DS13 (PreA) did all the review exercises for chapter 6 (decimals) and nailed all but 2 questions in a record 1.5 hours. He can do math, lol!  And my younger retested better as well.  Hopefully, it was just a phase. It has been stressful around here since their grandfather entered the hospital a week ago and now he is home and better. Maybe the kids fed off that? I don't know, we are going to keep treading on and look forward to seeing their science project presentations tomorrow.  Thanks for listening. 

[RootAnn]

OP here. My faith in my kids has been restored.  We reviewed and reassessed and they turned out to not be as far behind as originally feared. In fact, DS13 (PreA) did all the review exercises for chapter 6 (decimals) and nailed all but 2 questions in a record 1.5 hours. He can do math, lol!  And my younger retested better as well.  Hopefully, it was just a phase. It has been stressful around here since their grandfather entered the hospital a week ago and now he is home and better. Maybe the kids fed off that? I don't know, we are going to keep treading on and look forward to seeing their science project presentations tomorrow.  Thanks for listening. 

:party:

[daijobu]

I am having one of those weeks where I want my kids' education to be someone else's problem.  This week is a review week for them which involves testing how much they have retained over the quarter and year thus far. Well, my 5th and 7th graders have bombed.  My oldest who is in AoPS PreAlgebra seriously forgot how to solve  .024 x 0.0042.  Really. The same kid who scored 88%ile in math ITBS last year. Ugh.  

 

Oh, I don't know.  He may just be out of practice.  AoPS prealgebra doesn't really reinforce the sort of computation skills like the one you mentioned.  And all those decimals and zeros...yuck.  

 

Have you tried suggesting he rewrite the numbers in scientific notation and then proceeding with the multiplication?  Or better yet, a modified scientific notation:

 

0.024 * 0.0042 = 24 *10^(-3) and 42 * 10^(-4).  But even then you are still stuck with multiplying 24 and 42 and that's no fun, unless you use the distributive property.  

 

I guess my point is, if he's been doing AoPS and plans to continue with AoPS, those types of computation skills become less practiced.  They are still good skills to have in your hip pocket and worth having down pat, but IMO it's no need to be so hard on them.  

[Momling]

We have used Math Minutes to keep up with skills (also during vacation). It's gentle and has helped my kids keep things fresh. It's a bit easy, so get a year ahead.

http://www.christianbook.com/math-minutes-grade-8/9781591984320/pd/882636?event=CPOF

[Critterfixer]

 

OP here. My faith in my kids has been restored.  We reviewed and reassessed and they turned out to not be as far behind as originally feared. In fact, DS13 (PreA) did all the review exercises for chapter 6 (decimals) and nailed all but 2 questions in a record 1.5 hours. He can do math, lol!  And my younger retested better as well.  Hopefully, it was just a phase. It has been stressful around here since their grandfather entered the hospital a week ago and now he is home and better. Maybe the kids fed off that? I don't know, we are going to keep treading on and look forward to seeing their science project presentations tomorrow.  Thanks for listening. 

 

Never underestimate the brain-numbing power of stress. Gets us all at one point or another.