Works for Me Wednesday - Math Dice

9/21/2011


My daughter is in 3rd grade and is just being introduced to multiplication.

Multiplication means... 1) my daughter is growing up. I always have viewed multiplication as a harder concept that only older kids grasp. Now she is one of those "older kids." And 2) we need to start practicing times tables. I have vivid childhood memories of the struggles and the tears to memorize times facts. I don't want my daughter to have such a hard time with this, if I can help it.


Bring out the dice!

We own an over-sized pair of foam dice, but any dice will do. Roll them and start talking your child through the math problem that the dice present. Factors won't be larger than 6, so that makes dice perfect for beginners.

Of course you can use the dice for other math problems too. We have used our dice for basic addition and subtraction problems. My 3-year-old son now uses them for simple counting as well.

If your children are like mine, they get excited over anything new and different. Using dice for math problems is much more fun, according to my daughter, than using flashcards or doing a math worksheet.

Give dice a try. It works for me!

1 comments:

Caroline | Maths Insider said...

That's so cool! Kids love "playing" math! You could also get 10 or 12 sided dice for when your daughter gets onto higher tables. Playing cards are another great times tables prop!

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