Practicing math facts can be very boring and stressful for both children and parents. But, we all know how important it is for students to memorize math facts. Unfortunately, many children don’t want to practice them and it ends up being a battle for all involved!
Traditional flash cards, IXL an other computer activities, and workbooks are all a good source for fact practice, but some students don’t respond to these methods as much as others. There are other strategies for helping your child memorize their math facts that allow for individualization, different learning styles and, most importantly, FUN!
1. Try Dice: Purchase a bag of dice. Your child can roll the dice, add the two numbers to he/she is practicing math facts. This is an easy game for him/her to do while you are making dinner or even sitting at a restaurant. You can play against each other and keep score of who has the greatest sum. Keep dice in your purse or car so they are always available for math fact practice!
2. How about War with a deck of cards: Using either a deck of playing cards or a deck you’ve made out of index cards, play “War” to practice facts. Split the cards between the two players. Turn over the top two cards – you can either add or subtract the two cards to see who wins. The first one to solve their fact is the winner. The winner takes all 4 cards, and you play again just like the traditional card game of War. Whoever has the most cards at the end wins! Again, it’s a very easy game to keep in the car or your purse so learning is always near.
3. 100 Chart: The 100 chart is an amazing tool to help build your child’s number sense and allow them to use something concrete to memorize their facts. They can use it as a visual tool when they need a point of reference or they can use it as a tactile tool by touching the numbers or using a game piece to count forwards and backwards. You can print free 100 charts off the Internet.
4. Triangle Facts: These are used as traditional flash cards, but they help to make the connection between all three numbers in the fact, which is so important for the “memorizing” process. Choose a fact, for example, 6 + 3 = 9. Place each number in the corner of the triangle with a star next to the answer (in this case, 9). While holding the triangular card, cover one of the numbers with your finger so your child can only see 2 numbers, then have him/her find the missing number to complete the fact. Your child can practice on their own or you can quiz them. Triangle facts are easy and fast! You can buy them, make them yourself, or print them free online.
5. Catch, anyone?: Buy an inexpensive beach ball, or just use a ball you have around the house. Write addition and subtraction facts all over the ball. Then let the fun begin. Toss the ball back and forth. Whatever fact your left thumb (or right) lands on, is the fact to be solved.
There is no discounting the importance of your child memorizing basic math facts. It can be discouraging when you know he understands the math concept for the operation but still struggles to recall basic facts quickly and accurately. You want your child to progress from using various counting strategies to having instant recall so he can focus on the complex process, the problem-solving, or the multi-step algorithm he is learning, without having to stop and ponder the answer to a simple math fact. For some students, this is a very difficult task that is the source of many hours of frustration and sometimes even tears. Teaching strategies rather than focusing on just rote memorization may help your child more easily recall basic facts.
