Where to start with a young learner

[StrugglingDad]

Hi. First post here, but I would really appreciate some advice about younger kids development. 

My son has just turned 4 and is very keen on maths. He’s figured out multiplication and division, prime numbers, square numbers, cubes, and the basics of things like simple algebra, factorization, and fractions. I’ve tested him at home on a couple of placement tests for Singapore math and Saxon Math, and he has no problem in answering the questions up until the level he can no longer understand the actual questions, but even then he’s quite able to answer the questions once the questions are explained to him.

My question is whether there is any structured maths program that you would recommend for an advanced, but still very young learner? At the moment I’m just teaching him things as they seem to come up, but I’m worried that I might miss out important concepts if I don’t follow a more structured program. 

I’m sure his language skills will eventually catch up, and we work mostly his non-math skills in our home lessons, but I don’t want to just stop his math development in the meantime, since he clearly loves it.

I’ve looked into Singapore Math and Saxon and a couple of others which are frequently recommended here, but they all seem to be geared to older learners in terms of their language requirements by the time they get to the level of maths my son wants to explore. Do I just pick one and translate the concepts into easier language, or is there a better approach I should be taking? Ideally I would love something  he could work at on his own, since he spends hours on his maths daily anyway, and I don’t have time to be with him constantly unfortunately; but I know that’s not really going to be possible at his age. He does read well for a 4 year old, but it’s not at the level where he can get by on his own yet.

I don’t have any other local options available like math clubs or school support, as we’re living in a small country without much development unfortunately, and he’s not yet keen on doing any kind of online classes, due to his age. Schools here aren’t really able to help, as they are really limited, and have been on lockdown for the past 18 months, so he’s not had any formal schooling yet, other than about 4 weeks of zoom classes.

Any advice would be gratefully received, especially in relation to how to approach the skills gap between his reading/language skills and math skills.

 

[Clarita]

3 hours ago, StrugglingDad said:

My question is whether there is any structured maths program that you would recommend for an advanced, but still very young learner?

For this age group I've found Montessori to work really well for this age group. For 3-6 maths it can cover through multiplication and division, fractions. I also think it's easy enough to cover algebra thought processes with the same materials. The downside is it's not really structured in terms of having a book that you can go through. You can purchase or find "albums" with descriptions of the activities and sequences, but you'll have to piece together the actual lessons for your child. I like it because the activities don't require language skills just exploration of the child. 

I do struggle with not having a clear check box sequence using the Montessori method. So, I add a textbook style math program to it. The textbook math program is below level, meaning the concepts are things my son may already understand. I do a quick blurb based on the "teaching" portion of the book. Then we do very few practice problems (almost like a just for fun). This is also where we practice the "language" part of math; the writing and reading of problems (the reading refers to being able to "read" a math equation if word problem then I read it or just do it in real life).   

It is such a blessing to have a child where basic concepts come so easily. Another thing I've found is this is a great chance to take the math concepts slowly and really explore the topic. So aside from understanding the basic concept and just being able to do the math problem, we'll explore different ways of doing the same math concept. We work on memorization of math facts to be able to do problems quickly. 

[HomeAgain]

Look up Gattegno maths.  It's what we use.  It's cuisenaire rod based, mostly oral, all 4 operations right from the beginning.  More than that, it's meant for small children.  The exercises are as short or as long as you want them to be, with a sample script in the book to use. There are videos on Youtube showing it in action (Mathematics At Your Fingertips part 1-3), free editions on Issuu, and print editions available through Educational Insights for about $9.  If you absolutely need or want worksheets, Miquon goes along with it mostly through about the beginning of book 2, but the series continues through late middle school math indepth.

[mckittre]

Not structured, but my kid at that age loved playing "magic function." Player A thinks of a function (starting simple, like x+3, and as the kid gets better at the game, polynomials like x^3/3+x-4, square roots, 3 dimensional functions, etc...). Then Player B gives values of X, Player A spits out what the corresponding Y value would be, until Player B guesses the function. Then switch roles. The guessing has a strategy too, since the kid will quickly figure out that you can get useful info guessing fractions, zero, negative numbers, very big numbers, etc... Playing that game orally while on hikes and walks was probably 90% of the early math my kid did.

[HomeForNow]

Beast Academy (by Art of Problem Solving)?
https://artofproblemsolving.com/store/list/beast-academy

 

[mathmarm]

Do not worry about missing out any important concepts at 4-6 years old. Continue to teach him whatever you can in whatever order you want. Clearly, if you try and jump over something fundamental, it will come up because he won't "get it".

How did he get to the point where he is at now?

[Jackie]

I second mathmarm’s comment to not worry. Your kid is clearly absorbing math and will be able to fill in any “gaps” later. 

Beast Academy might work. You can read the guides together. I believe the online version has a button that will read the questions aloud. My daughter didn’t quite have the patience for it at that age, but did start level 3 when she was 6-ish.

With you assisting with any language, you could also look at Hands On Equations or Calculus By And For Young People. You could also continue to play with math concepts hands on using things like Zometool. Games like Dragonwood were great for introducing the basics of probability. If he does screen time, the various Dragonbox apps might interest him; some of them teach concepts from Algebra and Geometry without needing words at all.

[SDMomof3]

Another vote for Beast Academy. prodigy is a good game for math.

[lewelma]

Welcome to the board!

Lots of math games in MEP Math out of the UK. It is free, so you can check it out without commitment. 

I will add, however, that my older son is *very* mathy and I just taught him on the fly until he was about 6.5 to 7. By the age of 12, he very definitely caught up with any kid that had been taught systematically from a young age.  Basically, playing with math at a young age is absolutely as good as doing a structured program. 

 

[Not_a_Number]

This is coming from my own personal perspective on math teaching... but I think that kids who play with math are MORE likely to build robust mental models than kids taught systematically. So I’d just answer his questions and play games with math and be content with that. 

[bibiche]

We used MEP at that age but mostly played a lot of games and built things and did logic puzzles.

[SoCal_Bear]

I thought I would point you to Kitchen Table Math books. It's a lot about playing with math. 

Maybe Right Start math card games?

There's math based board games as well like Prime Climb for example. 

I remember doing logic a lot as well (lollipop logic, logic safari) and other materials like math analogies, balance benders, mind benders, logic links, balance benders, etc.

We also did coding apps at that age as well. 

It did help a lot to invest time into reading level. My son was motivated to do so when he realized that would unlock a whole world of things for him to access on his own.

[mckittre]

My kid liked balance benders books also. And some apps -- Dragonbox, if I remember right. But mostly we just played with math conversationally.

I would let reading/writing and math, and everything really, just go at the appropriate pace for that subject. My kid was advanced at math, but a very slow/late reader (there's a lot of dyslexia in the family), who didn't catch on to reading really well until 9.5 yrs old and still hates to write on paper. It would not have helped him to try and make his subjects match.