It’s not rocket science…never say stupid and math in the same sentence

I was talking with a young girl yesterday who shared with me that her struggles in math came down to the fact that she still didn’t really know her multiplication facts very well; this young lady is about to start high school, which means she is about 14 years old. It may seem shocking to you that a 14 year old would still struggle with basic math facts, but you’d be amazed at how many times during the school year I hear that very same sentiment…usually, I hear it from a parent, or quite often from the student’s math teacher.

It’s important to understand that knowing the basic math facts is just one little component of a student’s math toolkit. Students who have sharp tools can handle the more rigorous math that is being done in school today. I remember, and so might some of you, a time when we drilled the facts again and again until we knew them.

This was part of our daily math experience, and by golly, we learned those facts! But, today, there is a greater emphasis on developing critical thinking skills in order to facilitate higher level thinking for problem solving. This is what’s necessary for 21st Century learners.

Since there are only so many hours in a school day students cannot spend much class time on rote memorization skills. Therefore, once students have been taught the meaning of multiplication which typically occurs in 2nd and 3rd grade, drilling those math facts has to be done mostly outside of school. Many students will learn their facts because they are just intrinsically motivated to do so, they pick them up in conjunction with other concepts that are being taught, or their parents find a way to make them practice… flash cards are one way, Mad Minutes, are another and my all time favorite Multiplication War is the best way I’ve found to make it happen…It is expected that most students will eventually get the facts mastered in due time.

The young girl that I talked with yesterday, and many students like her missed out somewhere along the way and now they feel frustrated, and even stupid about math. What I was picking up from her was a sense that she was down on herself for not trying harder when she was in the earlier grades.

As someone who is totally devoted to building student self-esteem, I feel so sad for kids who find themselves in this situation. They may actually have very good reasoning skills and a keen ability to do well in math, but they don’t even know it because they rarely get the satisfaction of being that person, in the class, that raises their hand first and knows with confidence that they came up with a solution. Basic elements are holding them back. I feel for parents who desperately want their child to succeed in school but are not sure how to help. I recently received an email from a mom who told me her daughter “feels so dumb in math, what can she do? She ended with, “Please help!” This prompted me to come up with a few suggestions:

speak positively about math regardless of your own feelings and experiences… math success is more important than ever for the 21st Century learner
never say, “You take after me, and I was awful at math” … that just gives kids an excuse to not do well
make sure your student has the basics down before middle school..they should be able to add, subtract, and multiply basic facts fluidly
use math vocabulary whenever the opportunity arises – math words are abundant and kids are like sponges if you are consistent.. I visited a kindergarten class once in which the teacher consistently asked the students to sit on the circumference of the circle…every one of them knew what to do…5 years old!!
play board games that require some math thinking and conversation; ie: Monopoly, Yahtzee, Battleship, Connect Four, Risk
math skills improve with practice, just like any other activity that is worth doing..make time for practice!

I would love to know your thoughts on this topic..please feel free to comment!

More ideas at mathpractice4U.com