| With so many fads and myths concerning | | | | be very helpful - but for basics like the |
| learning the multiplication tables, it may be | | | | times tables, it has been shown in studies |
| hard to sort through them and find the ones | | | | that they are more of a distraction from the |
| that have the most meaning for you, your | | | | actual material than an real aid. |
| child, or your students. | | | | |
| | | | - Be such a drag that the child will always |
| There are several factors you should consider | | | | consider math as a boring drudgery. |
| while looking for the methods that fit your | | | | |
| needs. And remember, when you are learning a | | | | - Be just another way for some corporation to |
| new skill, it's good idea to try more than | | | | inculcate your child with its Saturday |
| one strategy. The "shut-up-and-learn-it" | | | | morning lineup of cartoon characters. Math |
| strategy is the one used by many public | | | | itself can be fun, but not just because some |
| schools in the United States. It's no | | | | animated corporate lackey tells your child it |
| mystery, then, why the U.S. lags behind most | | | | is. Be wary that your child doesn't get into |
| of the world in elementary math skills. | | | | the habit of only doing homework if it |
| Luckily, your child doesn't have to be at | | | | involves consumer toys or icons. |
| that low level. | | | | |
| | | | The strategy should: |
| When searching online or elsewhere for a way | | | | |
| to learn the multiplication tables, you might | | | | - Emphasize understanding of the concept of |
| consider the following points. | | | | multiplication, not simply memorization of |
| | | | some "facts". |
| The strategy should not: | | | | |
| | | | - Be firmly grounded on the concept that |
| - Be taught with the use of a calculator - | | | | multiplication of whole numbers is simply |
| ever. Calculators were invented by vampires | | | | repeated addition. |
| to suck school-children's brains out. They | | | | |
| are crutches. You wouldn't give crutches to | | | | - Be based on more than one sense. Just doing |
| healthy child, would you? | | | | worksheets is not enough. If you repeatedly |
| | | | hear multiplication problems as well as see |
| - Be dependent on memory (mnemonic) gimmicks | | | | them, you learn how to deal with them with |
| like rhymes or songs. Such things may have a | | | | more than one sense. That "locks in" the |
| short-term effect, but they don't help | | | | skill. |
| develop a sense for numbers. And, as mnemonic | | | | |
| devices, they are usually not very good ones. | | | | - Foster a sense for numbers. In other words, |
| If you depend only on those gimmicks, the | | | | it should illustrate the relationship between |
| child will neither develop a deep | | | | the digits to be multiplied, and more |
| understanding of multiplication, nor | | | | familiar numbers, such as number ten. For |
| mnemonics. (When you get to more advanced | | | | example, 5 x 6 is the same as half of 10 x 6. |
| manipulation of numbers, mnemonic devices can | | | | |