How to teach multiplication?

Hi Melissa,

Thank you so much for your kind words. I just read about some of the struggles you are having with your older children on another post and hope this note finds you refreshed this morning and enjoying the Peace that surpasses all understanding. Your Thursday Thanksgiving pictures are beautiful.

Your questions:

First, your parochial school experience: Historically, many things are counted in 12’s – 12 inches in a foot, 12 in a dozen, 12 months in a year (to name a few) and having a base of 12 makes it convenient to convert fractions. Before the decimalization of British currency in 1971, there were 12 pennies in a shilling. This is most probably why the tables were previously taught to 12. Today, most cultures have a decimal currency system.  The decimal system (based on 10) is what we generally use in math and the metric system is a decimal system so depending on your age and where you went to school (even which state and teacher) probably determined whether you learned your tables to 10 or 12. The gridded notebooks I buy for math have the tables up to 12 on the back (we teach up to 10).

As a side note, even Irene Stephens, Ambleside’s lecturer on mathematics, bemoaned the British Imperial System of measurement when the metric system made for simpler calculations.

Your other question: I hope what Ruth meant is that the handbook is not a textbook that you can open up and do the days work. Just as CM’s use of great literature, narration, copywork, and poetry really changes our modern thought on the way our children learn “language arts” her ideas and methods surrounding math truly make it “living.” Charlotte appealed to the beauty and truth of mathematics, and believed that by presenting math in such a living way it trained the child in good habits and would also point to God and His glory. 

If you have 15-20 minutes a day to spend with your child on math, you can apply her methods. Any textbook I would recommend as closest to CM still requires mom or dad to be with the child as oral work and mental arithmetic are fundamental in ensuring understanding before preceding to written work.

It is a relatively short read of 100 pages and is designed to both take you through her over-riding philosophy as well as a practical, step-by-step way to teach specifics. You can download the sample to see exactly which topics are covered. For example, Chapter 2 lays out how to teach one through nine, the meanings of symbols, when and how to introduce the writing of numbers and how often to use written work, the number 10, notation and idea of place value, etc. covering the ground all the way through Elementary Arithmetic which ends with five steps to lead your child how to discover the rule for finding “area.” 

I hope it’s a help.

Warmly,

Richele

a quick thing we do each way to drill facts is this: I have a multiplication chart printed out (from MUS’s website) and slipped it in a dry-erase pocket (or you could laminate it). We set the timer for five minutes and I have him write the answer over the problem with a dry erase marker. Right now we are seeing how many he can do in 5 minutes. When he starts to complete the whole thing, we will back the time down. I have seen improvement very quickly this way.

I think this is helpful because it reinforces skip counting and helps you to really see the patterns. 

I would like to add in that your child might not be ready for multiplication yet.  If you continue to have struggles, back off and try again later.  My daughter (currently 8) begged me to teach her multiplication last year.  I refused because I believed she wasn’t ready for it.  She decided that she wanted to know it so badly she taught herself.  With that being said, she is still not super fast with the facts.  She still has to think about them, but she gets the correct answer if given a moment to think about it.  She also is not ready for multiplication on paper.  Many children can mentally work problems that they are not ready to see on paper yet.  So follow your child’s lead and work at their level.  You do not have to teach a concept just because someone thinks a third grader should know it.  Your child will reach a level of proficiency.  

We do a lot of mental work.  Bedtime Math (website and Facebook page) has wonderful daily problems at three different skill levels.  My girls enjoy doing these problems each day.  We also play games to reinforce the operations without actually teaching them.  Here are a few http://www.drwrightskitchentablemath.com/rgames.html.  We also enjoy the Muggins Math games.  We have Knock Out which focuses on addition and subtraction.  The game Muggins adds in multiplication and division.  When a child has a need to know something, they are more motivated to learn it.

Misceegee (on this forum) has mentioned her great success with Rapid Recall by Little Giant Steps. I bought it for my dd6, but loved it so much that my dd9 is joining in. After just a very short time of trying this program, my kids are QUICK with recalling the facts. It’s worth the expense and I plan to buy the next level soon. It takes so much LESS time than all the other math facts games/programs I’ve attempted, with amazing results that are retained!