Mental Math with Training Wheels

One of my students came this week with a concept that I had never thought much about. Her teacher taught her students how to add and subtract using what she called "Arrow Math". As my student described it, I realized it was just a visual way of representing mental math.

My interest was piqued and I had to google it to find out more. I stumbled upon an article by Wendy Petti, called Picturing Mental Math. She describes it perfectly.

I liked how she referred to adding this way as, "mental math with training wheels." I may use this method in my tutoring, but not sure about it. I know I teach this skill, just not this way.

Has anyone tried this way before? Let me know your thoughts.

Study Skills

One thing that many middle school students lack is study skills! With my students, we practice these skills and I bribe them (just a little) to take notes in class and bring them to me. It helps me see if they can grasp what the teacher is really trying to say.

Here are some ideas for practicing these skills:

* Select a game that the child is unfamiliar with such as Phase 10, Rook, Pyramid Soliataire, 21, etc.

*Get the child a piece of paper and pencil. Ask them to write down a list or to-do as you describe to them how to play the game.

*Next the child will read you their directions. Kindly point out any important parts of the game they missed and have them fix their notes.

*Finally, you play the game with the child.

More Ideas:

You and the child write down 5-7 sentences. Then swap lists and you get to study them for 2 minutes. When you say go, each person writes the sentences down. The sentence can be counted correct if it has the general gist of the sentence. The first time you play, make sure the sentences are simple like "I like to ride bikes." As the student gets better and better at this task, change the sentences to varying lengths and not starting with "I or You". A better sentence would be, "Everday, I drink milk." or "One summer, I went to Paris, France."

Another idea would be to memorize a poem with the student. Memorizing is becoming a lost skill because of the "google" type world we live in. Teaching this skill will go a long way in the students ability to become great scholars.

Carnival Fun Ideas

I am working with my son's PTO this year and I volunteered to be in charge of all things booth. I complied a list of fun carnival games. It took hours of my time and I thought I would share the ideas with you! If you have a community, church, or school carnival coming up...feel free to have and share. Enjoy! click here.

Why boys think school is stupid & reading stinks

I've been tutoring for awhile and the story is always the same with boys, "I don't like reading, it's boring and stupid!" I watch them wiggle and shift in their seats and daze out the window during our lessons. I often wonder what their first few years in school was like. Did they get to do lots of hands-on learning and field trips or did they spend their day sitting still and being quiet?

A passion for reading begins early in life with the family introducing books to children. Then when they get to school, they are exposed to the skills of reading whether they are ready or not. Some finally figure it out while others detest reading altogether.

What do you think are some of the driving forces for boys not liking reading? I found this interesting school library journal article. It had some great suggestions for helping boys enjoy reading more. Click here to read it.

I Love Card Games!

I think card games are some of the best math tools that you can play to strengthen a childs ability to recall math facts quickly. The best part of card games is that you only need a deck of cards and a little time to play. They are simple to set up and children don't tire of them easily.

Today in blog land, I found a link to more card games from "Let's Play Math". Denise loves to teach math and has lots of great tips for making learning math fun. Thanks for the inspiration Denise!

Twizzlers Math

Any time you incorporate food into a lesson, most students eyes perk up! I know they are discouraging sweets these days in the classroom, but can't we do it just this once?
Read Twizzlers Shapes and Patterns by Jerry Pallotta. (for younger audience...middle school-not so much)

Materials:

* Ruler with cm

* Twizzlers

* Equations for Perimeter & Area of different shapes

* Pencil and paper to record with

Students measure their twizzler in milimeters and record the measurement on the top of their paper. You can have them average the lengths...believe it or not-they're not all the same.

The easiest shapes to start with would be a rectangle. After doing the math for perimeter and area of a few shapes, have the student break their twizzler in half. Find perimeter and area, have student note what happened to the measurements. Did it reduce by a 1/2 or 1/3, etc?

To end the lesson, let the student make their own shape with twizzlers. They find the perimeter and area, then the best part...Eating it. :)

When I gave my student the opportunity to make his own shape, this is what he came up with: