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People get tripped up on higher math if they have to stop and ponder how to do 6x7. If you can spit out "42" either from memory or take a few seconds to calculate it, you can still do the multiplication with no issue.
I'm talking about higher level math, not doing multiplication. If they're teenagers, they get discouraged and give up if they haven't memorized their multiplication facts. If they have to ponder a few seconds or use their fingers, it slows them down. And they probably won't make it to quadratic equations. (I tutor high school students to pass the high school exit exam.) Having had to send my own kids to Kumon many years ago because they didn't memorize their multiplication tables by third grade, I'm an advocate of the Japanese method of teaching math. Drills are boring but they work.
I'm talking about higher level math, not doing multiplication. If they're teenagers, they get discouraged and give up if they haven't memorized their multiplication facts. If they have to ponder a few seconds or use their fingers, it slows them down. And they probably won't make it to quadratic equations. (I tutor high school students to pass the high school exit exam.) Having had to send my own kids to Kumon many years ago because they didn't memorize their multiplication tables by third grade, I'm an advocate of the Japanese method of teaching math. Drills are boring but they work.
I'm living proof you don't have to memorize your multiplication tables to do well in math. The roundabout way I arrive at the answers actually helped me in higher math. I don't have to stop and think "What are the factors for 6?) because I multiply using factors. Just because memorization is how less creative people manage their multiplication facts doesn't mean there aren't viable alternatives.
All I ever learned was my 2's, 5's and 10's. I add or subtract to get the rest. 7 * 8 = 7*10 - 7*2 to me. 70-14 = 56 I did flash cards and filled out multiplcation tables until my skin turned blue but still couldn't recite the multiplication tables in order let alone while doing flash cards. It didn't take long to find a pattern I could work with though. I never was fast enough to place in the top during flash card drills but I was fast enough to pass. You either either need to memorize the mulitplication facts or have a process by which you can get an answer quickly even if it does involve counting on your fingers. BTW, I count dots when I add. I envision every number surrounded by that number of dots and add the dots. I have to count up to add 8 + 5. I wasn't in the top of the class in most of my math classes in college, I WAS the top of the class. I had more than one class in which my scores were dropped before the test was curved. I can think logically. I just can't memorize facts. This is one reason I love power point presentations. I don't forget the words. (I can't always articulate what I want to say because of a stroke when I was 18).
I am not creative. My son is a little behind in his math facts. We drill. It is so boring it is like pulling teeth. *I* hate it. And the facts are not sticking. He has TimezAttack which he does do. Any other clever ideas for practicing math facts?
Thanks folks.
There are some nice websites for practicing out there. Acedemic Skill Builders has racing games. Some you play alone and for some you can race other kids who are online. There are addition, subtraction, multiplication and division games as well as some other subjects.
"Multiplication Blurt." Remove the jokers from a deck of playing cards and divide the deck in half. Explain that the kings, queens and jacks count for 10 and the aces count for 11. All other cards count for the number on their face. Have one player sit in front of one-half of the deck and another player sit in front of the other half. Say "Turn," and both players turn over one card. Each multiplies the numbers on the two cards in her head. The first one to blurt out the correct answer keeps the cards. If both players blurt out the correct answer at the same time, they each get one card. The player with the most cards at the end of the game is the winner.
"Equation." You can play "Equation" with any number of children. Each will need individual whiteboards or chalkboards and writing instruments. Remove the jokers from a deck of playing cards. Explain that kings, queens and jacks count for 10 and aces count for 11. All other cards count for the number on their face. Hold up a playing card and let the students write multiplication problems that equal the card's number. For example, if you hold up an 8, the students can write either 8 x 1 or 2 x 4. Each time a student writes the correct answer, he wins a point. Play continues until one or more of the players reaches 10 points.
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