It has been my experience that most primary teacher spend a lot of time worrying about a student's computation skills when doing math. This is without a doubt an important skill, but what I have been seeing is that too much emphasis is being placed on the rudiment and process of adding and subtracting and not the meaning of what it is to add and subtract. What I mean by this is the teachers only concern themselves with the end result of a right or wrong answer. I would encourage the primary teachers to spend more time using base ten blocks and cuisannaire rods to show students grouping and place value long before they would ever write numbers. Especially in first and second grade. When I taught second grade the SAT Math was a oral test and the students had to understand the concepts of place value that didn't involve actual computation but mental processes involved in understanding place value. I was taught that you always start with concrete concepts before moving to the abstract concepts yet most new teachers have very little training in how to use concrete materials and representations in Math.
Tracy Fields
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I think that teachers in the upper grades (third through fifth) spend a lot of time worrying about a student’s computation skills because students do not understand the meaning of adding and subtracting. As an upper grade teacher, I have had to use the base ten blocks and cuisannaire rods to demonstrate grouping and place value. I use this as a review before I start a lesson. I also have students to draw the problem using base-ten blocks. Students should be able to communicate mathematically. Words, numbers, and mathematical symbols should be used to explain situations. Using the base-ten blocks and cuisannaire rods help students to communicate correctly using mathematical terms. As students are using the manipulatives, they should also talk about how they attained an answer. In order to gain more knowledge, other students are encouraged to listen. Explaining a math problem through writing or using manipulatives is beneficial to the success of a math program.
I agree that you need to understand the concrete before moving to abstact. If a child learns the meaning and why of (adding/subtracting) at a early stage they will be able to do the computation. It will make the transition to the abstract very easy. Students that are able to communicate math have no problem with understanding math problems. If they can talk the language they can get to the right answer. The base ten blocks and cuisannaire rods are very helpful in giving the children a visual picture and they are able to actually see what is being asked or taught. The earlier a skill is developed the better the student becomes at that skill.
Activities for how to start the day, which will help your children with math:
When you get your children up in the morning, ask them to stretch as high as they can. Then let them hop or crawl across the room. Even sleepyheads can have fun using their muscles, and these movements help them understand themselves in space.
Morning is a good time for children to learn that some things take longer than others. Use a timer or hourglass that is set to a given number of minutes and see if your children can get dressed in that amount of time. They can try to do other activities in that same amount of time.
If you don't have a timer of some kind, count out loud evenly..."1 second, 2 seconds..." as children get dressed to see how many seconds it takes them to get dressed. Children will hear the numbers, which will help them, learn to count, and they will begin to develop a sense of duration.
Ask your children to estimate how many spoonfuls it will take to finish their cereal. Count each spoonful as they eat. This playful way of eating breakfast can be fun for toddlers to practice counting! If you repeat this activity over time, older children will get practice in predicting.
In the morning, read a thermometer or listen to the radio to hear the weather forecast. Then, ask your children what clothes they should wear that day. This will give meaning to the temperatures you just read or heard. You might even compare the temperature inside with the temperature outside.
Reference
Retrieved on July 19, 2008 from www.ed.gov/pubs/EarlyMath/activities.
Activities for how to start the day, which will help your children with math:
When you get your children up in the morning, ask them to stretch as high as they can. Then let them hop or crawl across the room. Even sleepyheads can have fun using their muscles, and these movements help them understand themselves in space.
Morning is a good time for children to learn that some things take longer than others. Use a timer or hourglass that is set to a given number of minutes and see if your children can get dressed in that amount of time. They can try to do other activities in that same amount of time.
If you don't have a timer of some kind, count out loud evenly..."1 second, 2 seconds..." as children get dressed to see how many seconds it takes them to get dressed. Children will hear the numbers, which will help them, learn to count, and they will begin to develop a sense of duration.
Ask your children to estimate how many spoonfuls it will take to finish their cereal. Count each spoonful as they eat. This playful way of eating breakfast can be fun for toddlers to practice counting! If you repeat this activity over time, older children will get practice in predicting.
In the morning, read a thermometer or listen to the radio to hear the weather forecast. Then, ask your children what clothes they should wear that day. This will give meaning to the temperatures you just read or heard. You might even compare the temperature inside with the temperature outside.
Reference
Retrieved on July 19, 2008 from www.ed.gov/pubs/EarlyMath/activities.
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