I need some serious help!! My soon to be 13 year old WILL NOT learn his multiplication tables. He is Bored out of his mind with the way we are currently doing math. A change in curriculum is not going to make a differance, and besides, I promised my hubby (and myself) I would make do with what I have and not buy more curriculum this year. BUT he did say I could buy suppliments!!! I would rather find something free to use. So,with that being said, What can I do to make learning his multiplication tables more "fun"??? We are currently using Math U See so there are some manipulatives for him to work with. I have these supplimental things already on hand: Timez attack video game Times tales Math U see online quizes Multiplication bingo Flash cards (boring!!!!) Creative ideas for using these??? Not too much, but it's at least a start. I would LOVE to find something like a sort of file folder type game that he wouldn't see as too baby-like. But have yet to find something to suit him. Thanks for your help Ange
I wish I knew... Me and my brother were in the same grade and very competitive, so for us doing flashcards was great because we would try to be the quickest to answer. Does he have anyone he could memorize them with? A homeschool friend? Other than that, I really don't know... =/ Honestly, other than our natural competitive nature, we were just made to learn them, and it wasn't optional. You might try something like "Memorize X amount a day, and then you can play video games," or whatever else speaks his language.
When you say "will not" what exactly does that mean? At 13 he should be expected to meet you half-way with his own education. He should be helping you brainstorm ideas to learn his multiplication tables. What grade is he in? Just a notice: I am a very "no-non sense" person. I wouldn't tolerate that from 6yo...even if he were 13. 1) If he just doesn't want to learn them, fine,that will be his problem. Give him timed quizzes that rely heavily on multiplication versus repeated addition, fail him each time he earns a failing grade and tell him that until he improves his quiz grades, he's to have no TV, Video Game, DVD's, leisure Internet, Reading, Trading Cards, etc. Take away everything you can. He has the wrong attitude about doing his work if he can fix his mouth to tell you "Its boring, so I wont" where learning is concerned. 2) School House Rock, Multiplication Rock, Multiplication Stories. 3) If you get desperate you could try the "punish ignorance" approach. Popular American thought would say such a thing is mean, but I hear many schools around the world use this approach. Next time he is at friends, ask them how/when THEY learned and tell them you need creative ideas for your son who STILL, at 13, does NOT know his times tables.
At this site: http://themathworksheetsite.com/ you can print out a different 5-minute drill on multiplication facts every time you want one. If 5 minutes is too long at one time, you could draw lines across it to divide it into two equal sections, for 2.5 mins each (one each day). Then have him graph the results daily. Even just one of these every day should help. BTW, I had a student who in fourth grade just did not seem capable of learning the times tables -- so she had a one-minute drill daily, and except for that time and tests, she was allowed to use a reference chart. It took about two years, but finally I told her she was done with the chart and took it away. Suddenly, she knew her facts!
So you are sure he is not trying, never tried, and is not feeling frustrated and let down himself. The are very different things to consider if it is a different learning style versus an attitude problem. You have to diagnose the problem before you can solve it so make sure you are on the right path.
I haven't read everything that was wrote but here is a suggestion. I bought Vicki and CD called Mutiliplication Rocks. She learned hers by music. The CD is kind of a rock music style. Not real bad rock. She loved it.
I know my kids a very active. When they are struggling we do things like mother may I with math facts, baseball we call out facts and if they get it right we pitch a ball, hop scotch which is more competative. That will last between 20 to 30 minutes of practice. Hope that helps out.
Ok.. you said he doesn't know the multiplication tables... does that mean he knows HOW to multiply and just doesn't have them memorized? If that is the case I wouldn't worry... it's much more important that he understands how they work, not just memorizes them to go fast. Now that said, maybe he needs lots of visuals.. counters and hands on things and what not? Make him display 5X3 with beans or toy cars or what ever you may have on hand. If he is playing video games at all, he probably knows how to multiply, he just doesn't realize that is what he is doing. Also.. I know you said you didn't want to buy more curriculum, but I sooooo reccomend Teaching Textbooks for math.
My son thought of nerf math. He makes a grid on the white board with the answers and I call out the problems and he has to shoot them. We also made file folder games with math problems and I time him doing it so he tried to beat his time each time.
My dd is 11 (will be 12 next month) and still struggles with her facts too. She is good in math otherwise. I didn't want that to slow her down, so I let her use a cheat sheet. I made a list of the fact families on a sheet of paper that she is allowed to use. I noticed that after a while she has to use the sheet less and less. It took alot of pressure off her to be able to use the sheet, and she was able to concentrate on the actual problem. With time she will be able to know all the facts w/o the sheet (I hope :wink.
I agree with the poster who said that rote learning( memorizing) isn't as important as learning the concept. I have been teaching my son his multiplication by explaining that it is anotehr way of grouping. So many groups of ____=? That has simplified it for him so he can understand. Sometimes its the concept that is harder to grasp. Also we use the white board and he prefers that to paper. We have some file folder games, but my son is younger not sure an eleven year old would like those. Try to find ways to ask multiplication questions that pertain to everyday and sneak your practice in.
what about jumping the answer out on a trampoline or something. Give him game to do and you give him the problems to work out. Like 2 x 2 is what he jumps the answer out.
Thanks for the replies. He does understand the concept of multiplication. As a matter of fact he completed the Gamma book last year and has moved into Delta. I really wanted him to have them down solid. Am I looking at this the wrong way??? Should I let him move forward and continue to drill the multiplication tables or should I stop and focus on learning them before moving forward?? I really don't know what to do. Sometimes I think he's just bored so he doesn't put forth an effort because I have seen him get 100% on a math lesson and the very next day get every single problem wrong. It's extremely frustrating.. We have really butted heads this past year. Hubby has gotten involved and will come home and look over ds's math for the day then have him redo it on the wipe off board. Funny thing is, when dad gets involved his attitude is completely different. The discipline I have given him over his attitude has done nothing to change it. It seems to make things worse. I will still discipline though. Anyhow, I think he's just bored and needs more variety in his math studies. As far as his grade level, he is just now going into the 6th grade. He was held back in the 1st grade during his public school years and he has a late (nov) birthday.
