So my son in 2nd grade is working on rounding to the nearest hundred and four number addition in the hundreds. So for example one problem on his math page would look like this: 219 ( ) 820 ( ) 479 ( ) 381 ( ) 161 ( ) and he has to round the hundreds and put the numbers into parenthesis and then add both columns. He's not having any trouble with the rounding. He gets that. He seems to struggle with the addition and usually it seems to be a focus problem. As in I can see that he got the ones and tens right and lost focus adding the hundreds and is off by one or two. I would love any tips. It's been nothing but pulling teeth and lots of lost privileges around here this week and I really hate it. Is there another way that I can have him practice this concept?
Are you sitting with him when he does it? When my son struggles with a concept I sit right with him and make him explain to me what he doing as he does it so I can see where he's having problems and correct it instantly. If the problem is just the number of numbers (does that make sense? LOL) maybe make worksheets for him (in word or with a worksheet generator) Or maybe some math manipulatives might help. We love our Base Ten Blocks for math. Sometimes it's hard for kids to understand on paper and they need to see and touch and feel the numbers. The base ten blocks have been a life saver for my kids.
Are you using Math U See? My son is in 2nd grade and doing the same thing right now as far as problems go. He just started Lesson 18 today and it's exactly what you stated above. I sat with him today while he worked but he's tired as we just ran a bunch of errands. Tomorrow, I think he'll be able to focus on it himself and do it well. He has no issues with rounding. When I sat with him today, I kept reminding him to find 10's first and then draw a line from the 5 to the other 5 so he knows those two numbers are used up. Then he puts a 1 in the next place value over to represent that 10. Not sure if you are doing this or not but with the example you gave, it would go like this: 219 ( ) 820 ( ) 479 ( ) 381 ( ) 161 ( ) In the units line, he would draw a line from a 9 to a 1 and then from othe other 9 to the other 1. He would then put a zero for his answer and put two 1's in the tens line. For the tens he would draw a line connecting the 7, 2, and 1 and carry a 1 into the 100's spot for that ten and then add the rest and so on. Not sure if that helped or was just confusing. Good luck! Kellie
A side question: Is he losing privileges because of his attitude or his problem with the math. If he is having trouble but having a good attitude (or as good to be expected) without rudeness to you or throwing things I wouldn't take away privileges. I wish I had the page to look at. I am having a hard time understanding what the book wants you to do. It is hard to describe in a post I imagine.
Can you do his math on graph paper? (Bigger graph paper blanks are available online.) Sometimes lining up the columns was helpful for my sons to remember to carry every column.
I Was going to suggest having him rewrite the problem with the digits a little farther apart, possibly in the spaces between the lines of regular looseleaf paper turned sideways, OR in fairly large size graph paper. Maybe even put a cardboard book marker (or something) over the hundreds and tens while adding the ones, then over the hundreds while adding the tens, and then just adding the hundreds. Then transferring his answer to his worksheet.
He's being disciplined for his attitude not for struggling. The thing is that it doesn't seem like he's actually struggling with the concept, but that he isn't staying focused on the problem. For example he'll finish adding the ones column and have the right answer, then add the tens and have the right answer but then lose focus and be off one or two in the hundreds column or if the hundreds answer is 24 he'll have only written down the four and left the thousands out. I had him bring his paper over to me yesterday and he had no problem doing the addition or understanding the columns and carrying over etc. It's a laziness issue with not wanting to write the answer and an issue with focus. We had this struggle last year but this is the first time this year that it's cropped up.
I've been there. I have a child who loses focus in the middle of a math problem (or most any subject) and has to start all over again. Some kids are dreamers and it takes more maturity before they are able to focus like non-dreamers. I wouldn't consider it laziness at all. I'd sit beside him while he does his work to help keep him on track. My son works better when he is working against a timer. It helps him focus more. He also does well if I tell him that he will only need to complete 6 problems if he does them all correctly in the next x minutes. Today I did that in one subject. I told him that when he gets over 6 right he was done with that subject for the day. Normally it would have taken him 20 minutes to answer them all (14) correctly. Today he did 7 correct in 5 minutes so he was done for the day. Built in rewards have worked well too like giving a sticker after each problem or letting him run back and forth after each problem. At age 6 I wouldn't expect much of any independent work with a child who has difficulty focusing. My 8.5 year old does some independent work, but the assignments are short or I give him tasks that he enjoys. If he enjoys it he can focus on it for a long time.
