Math for struggling 1st grader

[tdbates78]

One of my 7 year old twin daughters is struggling with math, and I'm freaked out a little because I see myself in her. I've always struggled with math. Literally, like starting in second grade. By the time I figured out the concept the class was several chapters ahead of me. I chose my degree (liberal arts) mainly because it didn't require more than one college algebra class ;)

 

So right now we are using Math Mammoth, book 1. I really like it and it's working great for my other daughter. They are identical twins with vastly different interests and personalities, and math seems to come naturally for one of my girls. She catches on to the new concepts very quickly. The one that is struggling is much more of a dreamer. She has a fantastic imagination and loves to draw and create and, frankly, doesn't like math.

 

Right now we are doing units of 10s. She hasn't yet mastered basic addition and subtraction without the use of manipulatives, despite Math Mammoth's high level of repetition amongst the chapters. I pulled my girls out of PS first grade at the beginning of January, and I started with Math Mammoth at the beginning despite them learning adding and subtracting in school, because they needed it. So now that we are in units of ten and even skip counting by 2's is difficult for her and she gets very upset. I'm nervous about the upcoming chapters. I don't want her to go through what I did as a child and all through my school years.

 

I'm planning on sticking with Math Mammoth for the remainder of this school year. I'm trying to figure out course of action to take. I'm considering adding a supplement that may be of more interest to her, like Life of Fred or Arithmetic Village, that involve stories and drawing. I'm also thinking about adding in an online program, either as a supplement or in it's entirety. Or should I consider switching curriculum altogether? She seems to do much better when I bring out manipulatives, so I'm wondering if Math U See would be a better fit for next year? Or is there another curriculum that you guys can recommend?

 

I would obviously prefer that both of my girls stay with the same curriculum, but at this point I'm willing to do what it takes to make sure she gets it. Can anyone give me some advice? Would LOF or Arithmetic Village be a good fit? Online programs? Different curriculum?  

 

Thanks!!

[maize]

Take some time to research dyscalculia.

 

Ronit Bird math books have been helpful for some dyscalculic kids; I recommend posting on the learning challenges board for more advice.

 

My 9 year old has some degree of dyscalculia; with her I backed off for a couple of years and more brain maturity has helped immensely--she's working at least a grade behind in math but she is actually understanding the concepts. I would not push a child who struggles with math to stay on grade level; better that they gain true understanding of what they do learn than that they push forward without understanding or with increasing math anxiety.

 

For some kids it is math fact retention that is a primary problem; in that case I would let them move forward with an arithmetic fact reference sheet they can refer to as needed; I'm more concerned with conceptual understanding than with fact fluency if that is a stumbling block for a particular child.

Edited March 11, 2017 by maize

[maize]

If manipulative are helpful to her Math U See could be a good fit; it may be best not to keep the girls in the same curriculum if one is likely to outpace the other.

 

For computer practice, my children all enjoy the Prodigy game. There is a free version but the membership is well worth the $14 per year you can get through a group buy. There are a couple of Facebook groups that organize prodigy group buysbuys.

[Miss Tick]

I'm sorry I can't speak to your specific, larger issues. I wanted to mention, though, that I put my twins into different math by 2nd grade. They are sweet and polite to each other and there was very little explicit competition, but it was still obvious when they were both doing the same math if one was "better". It worked out ok! I have three children now, in three different math programs. Everybody does math at the same time and I just move around answering questions as needed.

 

You are right to address this issue now white you still have a lot of time. Maybe look at something like Miquon to get a very different approach - although Maize sounds much more experienced than i am.

[mom2bee]

You probably don't need to change curriculum, you do need to change the way that you are administering the curriculum you have.

1) Warm Up every.single.day.

She needs a 0-99 chart. You can make, print, or buy one. I suggest just printing one off.

She needs to count to 20, and then count down from 20 every day at the beginning of her math session. IF she struggles to do this, let her read from the chart.

She needs to USING a chart start at a random number and count until she reaches a stopping point. So tell her to find 7 and count to 15, or find 17 and count back to 3.

Chant/Recite: Addition means to combine  the same types of things into a new group.Subtractions means to separate a part of a group of things and take it away.

 

 

2) Consider reordering the chapters. IF you do the chapters on addition and subtraction simultaneously, the concepts could reinforce themselves for her and she could learn the concepts more holistically. Subtraction means to separate a smaller part from a whole, addition means to combine parts into a new whole. Fact families are easier for some kids to learn than then disjointed facts.

 

3) Continue with Math Mammoth but always, always, always, always use manipulatives.

YOU read the lesson, but teach it to her with the manipulatives. Walking her through the concept and process. You need to use manipulatives while teaching her the new skill, and she needs to use manipulatives to perform the tasks, first couple of times being guided by you and repeating the steps with you. She needs to be saying and doing the tasks

ie: "I'm adding 6 and 7, that means combine a group of 6 and a group of 7 into one big group. So I'll get a 6 and 7 manipulative.

"Since I'm adding 7 to 6, I'm going to start with 6 and count on 7 more. 7,8,9,10,11,12,13. So 6 and 7 are 13." Then when she seems comfortable with the process and can prompt you through it, have her begin doing the problems by herself, then let her teach it back to you, with manipulatives. Then she can read and interpret the problems on the page using "plain English"

 

Once she's comfortably and accurately interpreting and performing addition and subtraction, if she hasn't noticed yet, point out the commutative property so that she realizes it's consistent.

 

You can demonstate this with legos if you don't have unifix cubes. Get two different color bricks and build up towers of that are 2-10 units high.

GGBBB Talk about how this represents that 5 is 2 and 3, but it ALSO shows us that 5 is 3 and 2. (then flip the tower around) so that its' BBBGG.

 

So now when she does addition practice, she can get double mileage out of each problem, when she answers that. 4 + 3 = 7, you prompt her and ask, what other math fact is 7? and she can tell you that 3 + 4 = 7 as well.

[Jess4879]

It could very well be that MM isn't a good fit.  MM breaks things down so much that some kids (and some adults...me) can get lost as to what is going on.  I wouldn't rule out testing, but because she's only 7, I would set aside the curriculum and play some games.  Count things, read math books, play with manipulatives.  Dominoes, dice, board games.  All great math tools. :)  Peggy Kaye has a book of math games that is great.  Some kids just need more time.  I, personally, wouldn't begin a "drill" routine until you are certain she understands the concept of numbers and how they work. 

[Calm37]

Your description of your creative twin reminded me of one of my daughters. One year early on her schedule called for her music practice right before math. She came to me not long after this started and told me that she had noticed math was much easier to understand right after playing the piano. She continued this sequence all throughout her school years! Something different to try....

 

 

[ExcitedMama]

I was very anxious about teaching DS math since I am not at all mathy. After a lot of research I went with Math In Focus, which is supposed to be like Singapore but with more explicit instructions. I am very happy with it. The instructions are very clear and all of the steps are well illustrated. The books are brightly colored which might be appealing to your DD. It also will have some coloring for the workbook problems which DS likes and could appeal to your dreamer. It has lots of hands on descriptions as well for using manipulatives.

 

Consider Miquon as well. I was very intimidated by it since it's so different but it's an excellent program. It's something I think you just have to start using to understand. DS really likes it. We use it alongside MIF but I don't try to match them up a all. It uses the rods which might be appealing since she likes hands on manipulatives. It has fun things randomly too, DS loved fraction math with snowmen.

[Kiara.I]

And consider at least adding the Rightstart abacus, if not the curriculum.

 

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

[tdbates78]

Thank you all so much. My husbnd and I went to our local homeschool consignment store this morning to peruse other curriculum choices. I think we need to seperate their math curriculum as its leading to competition and upset.

 

Does anyone have experience switching math curriculum? I pulled her put of PS midway through first grade. Not sure how they were teaching math in the classroom. At home we immediately started MM. Will switching her again cause problems? We are leading towards Singapore Math or Miquon just based on our flipping through the books.

[OneStepAtATime]

For your struggler I agree with Maize research dyscalculia and also look at the Ronit Bird ebooks. Run her through those before moving her into a new math program. And I agree it makes sense to separate them. You don't want one held back for the other and you don't want your struggler rushed through.

[Syllieann]

I switched my dd after mm1 went poorly. She actually sounds a lot like your daughter. She's doing beautifully with Shiller. I wish I would have switched sooner. Fwiw, I think both miquon and Shiller could be a good choice. Miquon is cheaper up front, but Shiller goes higher in grade levels. Cbd has the least expensive digital kit for Shiller. Currclick has the miquon ebooks. Both miquon and Shiller will give you the flexibility to run each thread at the desired pace and use lots of manipulatives. Either of those would also remove the competition side of things.

[tdbates78]

I researched dyscalculia and I don't think this is what is going on. She just doesn't have enough of the warning signs. I promise I'm not trying to be in denial :) Her twin sister has high functioning autism so I'm open and accepting of potential delays. I just don't think that is what we are dealing with. I think some kids/people are "math people" and some aren't. She does know how to add and subtract, can count upwards of 200, understands greater than/less than. It's like she is confused by the extra digit(s). For example, she knows 5 + 2 = 7 (may take her a few seconds to mentally do the math) but if the question is, say, 105 + 2 = ? she just isn't getting it. If I bring out the manipulatives (I have math link cubes and the base 10 squares of 100) she can figure it out pretty quickly.

 

I *think* the problems are frustration over trying to keep up with her sister and MM may not be the right fit for her.

 

In the interim of figuring this out, I have decided that I am going to separate the girls for math and do one-on-one with each of them while the other is working on something else. That should hopefully eliminate the distraction, competition and some of the associated frustration. I'm also going to pick up a few basic addition and subtraction workbooks and my husband is going to work with her in the evenings. He is much more of a math person than I am, and maybe having someone else teach the material will help her out. I hesitate to do a complete curriculum switch now, as we only have three months left in our school year, but I am still looking for supplements and a change for next year.

 

I just got home from a long day out so I'm diligently researching all of the great suggestions you all gave. Thank you so much! If anyone else wants to chime in, please do so!

 

 

 

 

[maize]

Having your husband work with her is certainly worth trying. Do be aware that in some cases "mathy" people do not make the best teachers for less mathy sorts--the problem is that concepts can seem so obvious to the mathy folks that they don't have a clue how to explain them to people who don't just grasp them immediately.

 

This is not universally true however, and your Dh may turn out to be an excellent teacher for your dd.

Edited March 12, 2017 by maize

[tdbates78]

Having your husband work with her is certainly worth trying. Do be aware that in some cases "mathy" people do not make the best teachers for less mathy sorts--the problem is that concepts can seem so obvious to the mathy folks that they don't have a clue how to explain them to people who don't just grasp them immediately.

 

This is not universally true however, and your Dh may turn out to be an excellent teacher for your dd.

This is so true! When DH and I were dating (we were high school sweethearts) he would try to help me out with my math homework but couldn't seem to break it down to my level. I will need to give him some pointers first :P

[letsplaymath]

Be very careful with the idea that some people are "mathy" and others are not. It can easily become an excuse for giving up when things seem hard, or even a self-fulfilling prophecy. People learn differently in all topics --- at different rates, with different levels of interest, and with different levels of ease. But everything in school-level math is within reach of *every* student, as long as you don't open the door to math phobia.

 

For your own sake as well as for your daughter, click over to the YouCubed website and browse the research and activities they've put together. You might even want to work through the free How to Learn Math course over the summer.

 

Also, as Jess mentioned above, play math games. Make them a regular part of your school schedule, even more important than the workbook lessons. When children meet math on a workbook page, it often seems abstract and meaningless. When the same children meet math in a game, they can enjoy it. The numbers have meaning, the context is social, and there's ever so much less stress/frustration involved.

 

I have posted several math games for free on my blog. Or sample some of the games from Peggy Kaye's book. Try to play at least one math game every week for the rest of the school year.

[PeterPan]

She could have SLD math (dyscalculia). Given what you're saying, no I would not go with Miquon or Singapore. Although they're very nice programs, neither are really meant for dyscalculia. At this point, you might as well *assume* it is and get materials meant for it. That way if she gets into it and they're easy, boom, problem solved. And if it is dyscalculia, then you're using stuff meant for it.

 

Someone mentioned Ronit Bird. If you have access to a product that can do ebooks (ipad, whatever), Ronit Bird's ebooks are a VERY affordable place to start at under $10 each. For where your dd is, I would start with her Dots ebook, even if it goes quickly, and build from there. After that go through her C-Rods ebook and the games in her free Games ebook.

 

My ds is very bright but has SLD math, and I use Ronit Bird materials with him. When my in-home workers come in to do ABA with my ds (he has autism), they are jealous and wish someone had taught THEM math the way I teach him. :D Lots of people get through math, even without a learning disability, and just struggle or find it isn't very intuitive for them. It might seem like overkill to go to materials meant for the SLD, but it's really not. They're just good for everyone. What I *particularly* like about Ronit Bird's ebooks is that they are affordable and come with videos explaining every step. So you're never left wondering how to do something. For $10, you really can't beat it!

[PeterPan]

 

I have posted several math games for free on my blog. Or sample some of the games from Peggy Kaye's book. Try to play at least one math game every week for the rest of the school year.

 

Ronit Bird includes multiple games in every lesson/chapter in her ebooks. She also has a free card games ebook, though personally I'd suggest starting with her inexpensive Dots book. But I totally, totally agree that everything she needs right now can be done with games if the games are meant to develop the number sense and thinking. 

 

What we did is play it with the game for a few days, then as it gets easier I'll say "Hey, what would it look like if we tried to write that?" and whip out a whiteboard. Or we'll take the game manipulatives and lay them on the whiteboard and write under them to form equations. But we always do it after we've played the game many, many days to build the concepts.

 

Currently I'm teaching my ds adding/subtracting fractions and reducing using a game. We haven't done any written yet, and we've been playing this one game for maybe 3 weeks. I will. It's just that the game was a stretch for him when we started, so I'm waiting till it's SO easy for him and SO much has clicked that it's totally natural to start writing it. What usually happens with us is I write and he eventually starts asking if he can do the writing. Like I don't even ask him to write it. I just do it myself as we talk and the dc's on drive to mature drives them to want to do it when the task is within reach.

Edited March 12, 2017 by OhElizabeth

[Hunter]

A lot is being thrown at you. I'm trying to figure out what to say now, and what can wait.

 

I am an oldschooler, reared in the 1970's and 1980's back to basics movement, and started homeschooling in the 90's with a scope and sequence in my head that is now considered delayed, remedial and negligent. As the years pass, I cling to it harder, no matter how much the world around me is changing.

 

I cannot blindly follow any modern prepared curricula as I think they are developmentally inappropriate for average children. Average is normal and the majority, not a minority and a learning disability. Normal Is the hump in the bell curve and all things good and wonderful, not an anomaly and something to remediate.

 

I had an aspie math accelerated kid, and a normal kid. I never expected my normal kid to keep up with my aspie kid despite the normal kid being older. At one point, the younger was 5 years ahead of the older, and that was fine with me.

 

As a child, I developed about a year behind that schedule and years behind the current ones, despite teaching myself to read at 4 years old. There was nothing wrong with me, and I love math today and study it sometimes as a way to self-soothe when I am anxious, There are people with math disabilities, but I just think the main problem now is that we are expecting normal kids to perform at the gifted level.

 

I wasn't precocious in math. I now know that I understand some things that people with far more education than me don't understand. That amazes me when it happens.

 

If there is such a thing as basic human rights, I believe that children have the right to a developmentally appropriate math education. I believe it is nothing different than child labor to require children to struggle through lessons too heavy for them due to future employment worries.

 

So after all that is said, what do I like for math? I'm going to post this and start a new post, to make sure I don't lose this.

[Hunter]

Sam Blumenfeld wrote a book just as the first new math faze was leaving children in the dust, and parents were looking for back-to-basics resources to use with them. He recently died and requested that his books be released for free. He is my homeschool hero.

 

The How to Tutor Arithmetic chapter is free here to download.

Homepage

http://blumenfeld.campconstitution.net/Tutor.htm

Direct link to PDF

http://blumenfeld.campconstitution.net/Books/How%20To%20Tutor%20(Arithmetic).pdf

 

I just love his books How to Tutor and Alpha-Phonics. I love them to pieces. This book is just as relevant now for new new math as it was for new math.

 

I like this for a spine and then to flesh it out with Ray's Arithmetic and whatever else I currently have. I don't want to overwhelm you with too many resources. They can wait. But I have tons of links to free stuff that work with normal and remedial students with normal teachers.

 

I love math. I love reading about math education all throughout history. I love to read about math journaling and I love living math books. I love math based art. I love Euclid's Elements. I think a simple arithmetic algorithm is one of the most beautiful and ingenious things on earth.

 

And I think some of what I see taking place as "math" is just cruel.

 

It is a bit difficult to read How to Tutor as an eBook. It is worth printing or buying a hardcopy, if it looks interesting to you. Sometimes libraries still have old copies on their shelves. It is definitely available through interlibrary loan.

[tdbates78]

Thank you all so very much!!

 

I'm so confused! I honestly don't this she has dyscalculia as she doesn't have a majority of the warning signs. I am very interested in the Rodit Bird ebooks but as I have an Android (as opposed to an ipad) the ebooks are pretty expensive. Still researching them.

 

I'm definitely going to add in more games. I purchased a few on amazon, and math mammoth lists quite a few game options at the beginning of each chapter.

 

She likes the manipulatives and seems to get it much easier with them, so at this point I'm kind of leaning towards switching to math-u-see for next year as its very hands-on and she is quite visual. We are fortunate to live about 10 minutes away from an awesome homeschool consignment with a great selection of math curriculum so I may pick up the alpha used to work on this summer to see how it goes. But I'm also still researching all of the great advice I received.

 

Definitely switching to one-on-one math time with each of them starting tomorrow. I purchased Arithmetic Village and we read through Polly Plus and did some of the activity sheets this evening and she did a great job. She likes the colorful presentation of the book and the cute activity sheets. When trying to come up with the answer of 5 gems + __ = 10 gems (for example) she had to draw little gems to by the answer but she did it on her own.

 

Huge huge thank you for all of the great advice!!! I'm still researching all of it!

 

Tracy

Edited March 13, 2017 by tdbates78

[Runningmom80]

Thank you all so much. My husbnd and I went to our local homeschool consignment store this morning to peruse other curriculum choices. I think we need to seperate their math curriculum as its leading to competition and upset.

 

Does anyone have experience switching math curriculum? I pulled her put of PS midway through first grade. Not sure how they were teaching math in the classroom. At home we immediately started MM. Will switching her again cause problems? We are leading towards Singapore Math or Miquon just based on our flipping through the books.

 

I have twins who are roughly the same age, and one is better at math than the other.  I'm going to separate them next year as well.

 

We started the year with Miquon and switched to SM.  I did SM with my oldest but didn't want to buy all the books for 2 kids so I started out with Miquon.  My personal advice is, if you are not mathy (which I am not) you will most likely not like Miquon.  I bought every single supplemental book advised on the boards and I still got really frustrated with it.

 

Also, this may not be an issue for you, but I'm going to chose a curricula that isn't "grade labeled" for my DD.  Something with "ABCD, etc" so she doesn't feel bad being behind her bro.

[Hunter]

I like Arithmetic Village. It is loosely based on Waldorf Math.

 

If you scroll down, the free English downloads are a ways down. I like the African Waldorf stuff better than American stuff. And it is free.

http://www.zukunftsstiftung-entwicklung.de/vererben/download/

 

Waldorf first grade is age 7, and math starts at age 7, and the Arithmetic Village topics would be about grade 1 and 2 and age 7 and 8 if I remember correctly.

 

Not free, but Simply Charlotte Mason writes a lot about slower math from a CM perspective

https://simplycharlottemason.com/store/mathematics-an-instrument-for-living-teaching/

 

Tracy, I'm so glad you have a store where you can look at curriculum! I have never had that.

 

Definitely NOT free, but if you get a chance to look at it at your store, check out Math on the Level

https://www.mathonthelevel.com

 

Ignore anything I write or link if it is overwhelming, unwelcome, and too much too soon. Good luck! :grouphug:

[goldenecho]

Your daughter sounds a lot like my son.  He struggled with any rote memorizing at all at first (like I could "2 plus 3 is 5" and he would not be able to repeat it back to me when we started HS at 6).   Somewhere along the line we started "jumping on the bed" math.  I would quiz him and have him jump out the answer (starting out I'd focus on 3 problems at a time so he got a lot of repitition).  Pretty soon he was doing rolls and flips on the bed between answers in stead of jumping one time for each number (ie jumping 5 times if the answer was 5).  But it still worked.  He could still memorize so much more and even grasp concepts more with this physical activity intertwined with the learning.  I've read that physical activity can help with memory/brain functioning somewhere else (it's why when people are thinking hard they often pace). 

 

(Unfortunately, jumping on the bed math ended this year when my son kicked off the wall for a flip and put a hole in it...I'm considering what to do to replace it). 

Edited March 13, 2017 by goldenecho

[jmjs4]

MM is an epic fail for some children.  I would also highly suggest Math U See or Math Lessons for a Living Education.

Edited March 17, 2017 by WillowFlora

[8Arrows4theLord]

As a supplement for learning math facts you could try the triangle flash cards. They drill the facts as triplets-  Whole number is 5 its parts are 2 & 3.  So  triplet (5)2 3   would be:  2+3=5, 3+2=5, 5-2=3, 5-3=2

you learn 4 facts with one triplet.

I also agree about putting skip counting to music.