As a teacher I have seen firsthand how important mastery of basic math facts has become. With standardized testing and school accountability gaining popularity, teachers are having to teach harder math concepts earlier in the educational process. Students who master their basic math facts early are able to learn the higher level skills much easier since they spend little time figuring out simple math, they just know it. It is much like when students memorize sight words in reading and quickly advance in their reading fluency and comprehension skills. I have put together five fun ways to study the basic facts in case your child is getting bored with old-fashioned flashcards.
Grab a Deck of Cards
By using a deck of cards you can have your child draw two cards and they can figure out the sum (answer if the two numbers are added) OR the product (answer if the two numbers are multiplied). You can take the face cards out or have them symbolize zero and aces can be one. If your child gets the answer in less than five seconds let them keep the cards. After 5-10 minutes allow your child to add up all the cards they have using a calculator. Each time you do this activity see if they can get a higher score than last time. It is important to keep memorization practice under ten minutes. Frequency means more than duration when it comes to memorizing basic math facts.
Singing in the Shower
Each night before your child showers or takes a bath go over four subtraction or division facts three times. Then say them to a beat or to the tune of a song. For example you could sing this to the tune of “Row, Row, Row Your Boat”….”two, two, two minus one eeeequuallls three, yes, yes, two minus one is three. By the time their shower is over they should have sung the four basic math facts several times each.
Roll the Dice
You can roll dice for adding and multiplying in the same way you drew cards. Some gaming stores or on-line stores (Amazon.com) sell dice that have twelve sides. Have your child roll the dice once and write the number down, roll again and write the second number. Next they should write the answer. The process of writing the numbers is important and over time they will get faster at writing their numbers correctly as well as knowing their facts quickly.
Index Cards and Post-it Notes to the Rescue
This will take a little bit of preparation in advance. You will need to write numbers separately on individual index cards. On each Post-it note put an operation sign and on a separate note put an equal sign. Place an index card down, a Post-it note with an operation, then a blank index card, place the Post-it note with equal sign next and finally put an answer index card with a number that works with the problem. It should look something like this:
2 (on index card) + (on Post-it note) BLANK INDEX CARD =(on Post-it note) 5 (on index card)
Have your child write what the missing number is on the blank index card. You can also do this as multiple-choice. You can have three index cards to pick from. Keep changing where the blank card is so that your child can develop algebraic thinking skills.
Jump Rope Facts
Research shows that when children are physically active while reciting math facts they learn them faster. The physical activity is also a benefit! Have your child pick four basic facts they are going to practice. Have them jump rope and every time they jump they say a number, the next time they jump they say the operation and so on. The better they know the facts the faster they will be able to jump rope. When they start they may end up tripping a lot, if that happens, lay the jump rope on the floor and have them jump back and forth while reciting the fact. Do the same four problems over and over for five minutes. Have your child take a break and then an hour later come back and do the same four basic math facts. You could also have them do this every time a commercial comes on television. That would allow them to try to do them faster to get them done before the commercial is over.
There are lots of ways to stay healthy and have fun while learning in your home. Try all these activities a few times and then encourage your child to pick their favorite way to master their basic math facts. It is important to give your child a choice in how they study their facts but never let your child choose not to study! After trying a few of these activities your child will likely want to practice their basic math facts more than ever. One last tip, once your child gets really good at their facts, quiz them while int he car. Every time you stop at a stop light or stop sign quick quiz your child on a few facts, for every problem they get right on the trip, allow them to go to bed that much later that night. So, if they get five problems right, they get to go to bed five minutes later. My kids always loved getting to stay up a little later, and I loved that it was an easy and free reward.