[math4] FourthGradeMath Digest, Vol 2, Issue 15

[Jason Rock]

My personal opinion on this is that you might be simplifying it too much.
It is exceptionally easy to create a "flash card" system for learning
multiplication tables, but I know for sure that that didn't work for me and
it doesn't really teach multiplication.  What worked for me was thinking
about repeated addition (at least to start off, then I memorized by use).  I
think most people would say that the best way for children to learn single
digit multiplication *is* memorization, and that may well be true, but I
think it is important that we don't overlook some better way of doing it.

And these discussions need not slow down work.  I am all for a "flash card"
set of multiplication tables.  I just think it is also important to show
that 3*2 = 3+3 = 2+2+2 so the student can appreciate how addition and
multiplication connect.

Jason

On Sat, Mar 14, 2009 at 11:48 AM, Greg Dekoenigsberg <gdk at redhat.com> wrote:

>
> On Sat, 14 Mar 2009, Caroline Meeks wrote:
>
>  Hi,
>>
>> What is the organization of this team? Is there a leader or leaders?
>>
>
> Karlie and I seem to be the leaders.
>
>  Is there anyone on the team who is looking into the research on pedagogy
>> and about what work and what doesn't for Math instruction?
>>
>
> The only hesitation I have here is if we allow long pedagogical discussions
> to slow down work.
>
> The goals here are deliberately simple:
>
> * Identify a set of learning objectives, as defined by existing curriculum
> guidelines.  We've chosen Massachusetts 4th grade math:
> http://sugarlabs.org/go/User:Gdk/4th_Grade_Maths
>
> * Create activities that can tackle each of these objectives individually,
> in a modular way.
>
> * One by one, create a set of activities that ultimately address every
> learning objective in the 4th grade math framework.
>
> Any research that can help inform this very particular goal is welcome.
>
> --g
>
> --
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