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Troubles with Math… Math-U-See? Math Antics?

My child works HARD to keep his grades pulled together in school.  Like reading, Math is also very difficult.

We have extreme difficulty with the memory skills required to master the basic multiplication tables..  Even the basic addition facts are also fuzzy- just not concrete memories.

We work through the homework that comes home from a public school.  Grade 6, I think this is all common core.  A division problem, an absolute  value problem, a couple of word problems, an area or perimeter problem, etc… we get a few pages of mixed math applications for homework on average; 3 times a week.

Some problems look like a foreign language to my son. I will ask him if the teacher went over the material; and I know he must have, but my son just looks at the problem as if it is written in another language.

Some problems he has memory of certain processes, he can recall how to manipulate the numbers and formulate answers.  It is not easy at all.  He will make simple mistakes like subtracting 6 from 13 and writing down a 8 or 9 or some other number.

He will think of the numerical answer, 13 for example.  But sometimes, when he writes the number on his paper, the 13 comes out like a 15.  He will see his mistake and then write-over the 13 to make a 15.  But now… what he has for an answer looks like an 18 and he must erase his answer and start all over.  = Frustration

He has had several years of supplemental math (& reading) instruction; I know he has used manipulatives and other visuals in learning math in the past.  When I ask about math class as it is NOW, he tells me the teacher works many problems out on the board.    T

Within the math classes that I teach… I use the website Math Antics and supplement extra practice with classroom workbooks or worksheets from the web. THERE ARE MANY COOL VISUALS, OR COMPUTER TUTORIALS THAT CAN BE USED TO TEACH OR SUPPLEMENT A MATH LESSON.

In a short visit I checked out the Math-U-See curriculum materials that many home school Moms turn to. They used 100 blocks, 10 blocks, 1’s etc… and other numerical combinations to really help the student visualize their math.  I wonder if this is the right ‘curriculum’ to help my child master his numbers.

Personally, within my math class I use the video lessons from MathAntics. Even thought I teach adults, they have great visual lessons.  I would post more screen shots; but I am not sure about copyright laws and do not want to offend. Head on over and check those out.

Good Luck with the Math Instruction!!

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What did you enjoy most? The book or the movie?

Hands-down my dyslexic child will say movie, 99.9% of the time.

It saddens me to say that books give my child anxiety, frustration and tension.  They just do.  It is who he is.  I have been slowly growing into acceptance of that fact.

Within a class of 20-something children after finishing a novel; they also watched the movie.  The majority of the children in the class voted for the book as the favorite.  My child and one other voted for the movie as the best representation.

Book reports have always been a struggle.  Anything with books really has been a struggle.  Graphic novels are a must for the vibrant illustrations are necessary to help my child build meaning to the text.

Over time, I will post several titles of juvenile graphic novels for consideration.

Only recently did the light-bulb go on- did I actually see how differently my child processes the written word.  We are in middle school now.  Had I known years ago; I would have taken a different approach to books, novels, reading, reading minutes, etc..

I would have picked up more books on tape.  I would have tried to allow him to ‘listen’ to the first few chapters and then to continue on independently with the rest.

I would have liked to choose books that had movie representations to them.

I would have spent more time learning how to use E-books effectively.

I am excited to have downloaded a graphic novel my son is interested in reading.  An option for “Word Wise” just popped up on the screen.  This is a built-in program (Kindle) that helps young readers by providing hints for the most difficult words they will encounter.  They only need to tap on the word to have it read.  How cool is that!

I see the Audible Narration is available for the book I have chosen; for a fee of $3.49.  Ok… so I guess I can buy it – I know it will help him understand the book.  I am a little dissappointed at the cost- what about ALL the other children with dyslexia?  Are their families financially stable enough to pay for a book at $6.99 plus the auditory narration for an additional $3.49?  Perhaps the library will have options; here is a link to a related article highlighting the disparity of resources and low-income families.

 

 

 

 

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Dyslexia Study from 1997!! Shows the Importance of VISUALS

In my research, I found this old study rather interesting.  It presents a short article wherein it describes what it is like to think with Dyslexia.  It is a compilation of information from research from Harvard Medical Center & Central St. Martins College.

The Psychologist highlighted in the article designed a series of six tests of verbal, written and spatial ability.   She found Their visual spatial skills were also at a higher level – but they had difficulties with reading, writing and spelling.

Within this same article there is research from Harvard Medical Center.  They found “that dyslexics’ brains are “wired” differently from other people’s. “There is definite proof of a link between dyslexia and visual spatial ability,”

A researcher from Washington, named West adds the facts that the brain of a dyslexic person is wired differently.  “They lack efficiency in the left brain hemisphere which relates to language ability. But there is increased efficiency in the side of the brain which dictates spatial ability.”

A dyslexic himself, West shared that dyslexics:  “can rotate an image in three dimensions in their minds. Our educational system at the moment is based on words, books and lectures.”

A summary of my related opinions:

This heavy text-based verbal/written curriculum is not serving any of the Dyslexic students in the United States.  The work my child brings home is not very often visual in any way.  When I have asked about using visual videos to teach math I hear back, “no I haven’t ever done that.”  In today’s technology age- it is as easy as a little navigation and a click of the mouse to bring your classroom to life.  Visuals will engage both the dyslexic and non-dyslexic student and will bring new meaning to their studies.

For this reasons, I will repeatedly blog and share information about adding visualization to lessons, how to choose materials for the dyslexic child or student and more.

 

 

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Evaluating Textbooks: Visual vs. Text-Based

Not all textbooks are the same.  Here are two samples from Elementary/ Basic Mathematics textbooks.  The Houghton Mifflin text (above) has many more visualizations [data bars] here to assist in teaching how to add fractions.  The Scott Foresman text below has fewer visuals, but more numerical-text practice.

To evaluate supplemental materials for your visual-spatial child; seek out those with many visuals, illustrations & diagrams.

In the Adult Educational array of curriculum currently available; few if any visual offerings exist.  It is ok to look to supplement your resources with a more ‘elementary’ style of textbook like those shown here to use with an adult student.  The goal is to help them learn… if they learn more easily and quickly when visualizations are available.. then find them and use them.