Can you decipher this first grader’s math assignment? BoingBoing’s Mark Frauenfelder wants a second opinion. [%comments]
Make 10? Make 11? Let's Call the Whole Thing Off
TAGS: Mathematics
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No offense intended, but some teachers probably do not understand this well enough to teach it. All the research in the world can’t help teachers teach. Since this is research driven, where is the research indicating which teachers actually teach this well and which do not teach this well?
That font looks suspiciously like my daughter’s math book…we have had a couple long evenings of looking at worksheets coming home and thinking…WTF?
I realized its like teaching math using an abacus. Although not sure if its illustrated in an easy to understand manner
My son is in 2nd grade, and his math assignments look just like this. Last week, because of a very poorly written question, there were 2 right answers. I suggested that my kid mark down both answers and then explain to the teacher why they were both correct. He said that since one was clearly “more correct” than the other (also correct) answer, he would pick that one. ARGH!
This is what is confusing with most (math) teaching.
They tell you in younger grades when subtracting a larger number from a smaller number (make a deficit)
“you can’t do that!”
Instead a person might say, “You probably aren’t ready to do that kind of math. Wait until a few more grades. Let’s just sticker with smaller numbers taken away from bigger numbers.” Of course depending on the personality of the student, they might still say “NO!”
It depends on how you handle the inevitable time down the road a few years, when they say,
“You know when we said YOU CANNOT take big numbers away from small numbers? We lied. You can.”
“You know when we said a coffee cup cannot be a doughnut? We lied. It can.”
“You know when we said that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again? It is not. It is genius. We lied.”
As a parent teaching my five-year-old son math, I get it.
He wouldn’t.
There should have been instructions on it that says something along the lines of:
1) First, fill in the missing number/answer.
2) Then find out what number must be added to 10 to get the same answer.
3) Then fill in the squares to get the same answer.
Or some such.
My son gets homework like this on occasion. I’m tempted to send it back with all sorts of crazy comments, but then the adult takes over and I just use common sense.
Again, an adult can likely figure this out. A child would likely not.
“The graduate degree in Education is the worst thing that ever happened to American education.”
And how, exactly, is this true?
I am familiar with this method of teaching. The idea behind it is to teach kids conceptual understanding of how numbers are constructed, rather than simply performing rote memorization of arithmetic facts. If this lesson and homework were used as intended, the child should already be familiar with the process and have performed this exact exercise in class, under the guidance and facilitation of the teacher. There are lots of mathematical concepts being presented here. Students who engage this type of work are likely to have a deeper conceptual understanding of number sense and addition and will be better able to problem-solve using arithmetic skills.
Is the sheet confusing to adults? Probably. Is it intended for adults? No. Again, if used properly, the sheet is intended to reinforce skills and concepts worked on in school, and should be something the child is familiar with.