Did your child HATE math while learning the basic facts (add, sub, mult) and later come to like math
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Anonymous
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Would like to hear stories of hope and development of math skills.
DD HATES math (she says it all the time). She started saying it this past summer (age 7) when her younger brother (5) could answer basic addition questions faster than she could. I started giving at home worksheets on adding. DD complained and had a hard time (made worse by brother knowing the answers faster). Since worksheets weren't getting the job done, she started Kumon a few months ago. She has made substantial improvement on basic addition, but tells me she HATES to do it, fights and argues about doing it. When a newer concept comes up (like adding above 20 i.e. -- 15+7, she gets to tears and struggles and says over and over that she hates math). I work with her and it takes a long, long time to get it. She doesn't seem to have a good understanding of the number line and doesn't notice details (like 15 + 7 cannot be 12 b/c 12 is less than 15 and we are adding 7 to 15). We will keep working at it b/c I refuse to let her realize at school that she doesn't know what she's supposed to know (she'll be the one counting on her fingers in class). And I think she is making improvement although it is extremely painful in the process. My thought is that if I help her get the basics of add/sub/mult, she can quit Kumon and she'll have the foundation to do what she's supposed to do at school and she'll feel successful at math at that point. Can anyone relate? Did your child fight learning the basics in math and later enjoy the challenge of math in school? |
Anonymous
| Do you have an ipad? There are a zillion math game apps. I bought several and gave her 15 extra minutes per day of screen time for these games. Worked like a charm. We did 10 to 15 mins per day over the summer and she was the third in her class (first girl) to get all the way through her multiplication timed tests. |
Anonymous
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My DD hates math as well. She had problems learning her + and - facts. She eventually got the concept a year later but still uses her fingers. Multiplication...she still struggles with it in 5th grade, and she's an "old" 5th grader. I have no hopes that she will do well in math because she has no passion for it. I only hope that she can learn enough to get by and understand the basics.
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Anonymous
| I hated math when I was your DD's age and never really enjoyed it until a teacher introduced word problems. Once I saw math as something other than just endless strings of numbers, I got interested. I liked puzzles. Math is a way to solve puzzles. I grew up to teach and tutor math all the way through Calculus. Maybe word problems or something similar would help spark your DD's interest. |
Anonymous
Not the OP but we are getting an iPad for XMAS and would like some recs for apps. |
Anonymous
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My DD hated math at that stage. She has low working memory and just couldn't remember the facts. She's in AAP and they are doing lots of high level math. She's doing great and loves it. I think it was a confidence thing. She was embarrassed that she was having a hard time learning the facts and thought she was stupid. We kept telling her it as a speed bump she had to get through. She finally got through it and is happy.
Hang in there! |
Anonymous
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20:38 -- how did she get into AAP with having difficulty in math? Were you concerned that AAP might be wrong for her b/c of the math troubles? DD is ahead in other areas but the more trouble we have with her attitude in math, the more I think it may be better for us if her CogAt scores do not make the cut-off. She is likely to be close to the cut-off (my guess based on NNAT scores). I have been thinking during these tough times that she wouldn't be able to handle to extra work in AAP (especially math accelleration) and it may be a blessing if the CogAt scores are low.
Were you concerned? |
Anonymous
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Re: math fact apps for the iPad, there's one called Math Drills that we have been using. You can program in which math facts you are working on. So, for ex, let's say you just work on a few, like 3x4, 4x4. Then you can program in 16/4, 12/4, 12/3, 3x4, 4x3, 4x4. It's a speed game, and it keeps track of your child's progress. Then if you study another one (7x3) you can add that one in, so now the child has the previous ones plus the new one. You can keep going and add in more and more. This is working so far. Not fun exactly, and DC knows it isn't really a game, but it is less horrible than worksheets and flashcards (although we are doing flash cards from time to time as well).
Also we are doing a few "trick" ones, like 7x8 = 56 (get it? 5,6, 7,8). The nines are neat, and the 11s. Anyway, that leaves fewer to deal with based on pure memory. Also you can try "freerice.org" which is gives grains of rice to hungry people around the world-- kids like to feel they are contributing something positive as they practice the facts. |
Anonymous
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I hated math and did badly until I got past elementary schools. Did well in high school math when it got more interesting. Loved doing long calculations, just hated trigonometry. Don't know why.
Apparently doing badly in elementary and then well in high school is not uncommon at all |
Anonymous
| Check out these cool educational apps for your ipad at http://littlescholarsllc.com/Resources/educational-apps.html |
Anonymous
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Timez attack is a great game...supposedly addition and subtraction games will be available by Christmas.
Free and great graphics. Also the game tailors the questions to the math facts the child has a harder time with. Great way to add screen time as a reward...and get math fact practice in. |
Anonymous
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DD struggled to remember math facts (used and still uses touch math to remember addition and subtraction) and took years to remember multiplication and division. She understood how they worked, but couldn't remember the facts.
But it's not the worst thing in the world, not by a long shot. That's why there are calculators (and tutors). She's now in algebra and doing better in this class than any lower level math class, probably because they can use the graphing calculators. |
Anonymous
She got in because despite being an "average" student, she had high test scores. I think she just didn't learn the way that the base school taught. She's more of a visual spatial type. She does very well at the center because their whole philosophy is different. Also, she's somewhat organizationally challenged (probably ADHD inattentive type but we're holding off on evaluation because she's doing well). Her center seems to have methods that work for her type. Her WISC test scores showed very low working memory and processing speed on comparison to her other scores (which may explain her problems learning math facts), but her GAI was high enough (as was her CogAt). We were somewhat concerned, but we just had the feeling it was the right place for her -- and it is! |
Anonymous
This was me as well. I hated word problems, but loved doing equations (and still do!). I also was not a fan of geometry or trig. |
Anonymous
| I am a professional physicists and still do multiplication on my fingers. |