Mental Maths

[squashpie]

I am on the edge of being really boring about this subject but could anyone out there please help me?

I've been doing an hour or so (much more actually) of internet research on mental maths strategies. I've found hundreds of websites giving practice sheets; hundreds of recommendations for books that contain questions but where are the 'strategies' themselves? What specific 'tricks' 'skills' 'strategies' are there out there that primary school kids need to know.

DS knows number bonds up to 10. I know they learn times tables off by heart and the corresponding division facts, but what other 'skills' to they need to be able to do mental maths? Everywhere says PRACTICE but no-where does it tell me what techniques we should be practising!

Sorry, hot and tired

you should be able to get some info from the school, but apparently this book is specifically designed to help parents know what techniques and strategies their kids use at school. probably varies between schools though, so if you can ask the teacher it'd be good.

Thanks MMM. I've actually got that book and it is good but seemed very generalised, so I didn't get a very clear idea about strategies. Perhaps I should look at it again though.

Thanks for always responding so helpfully. I wish I'd started thinking about maths when my DS was 3 and not when he was nearly 7!!

We split our mental maths for each year group into two sections, what the children need to recall rapidly and what they need to be able to use. So for example Yr 1's are expected to know instantly
? all pairs of numbers with a total of 10, eg 3 + 7;
? addition and subtraction facts for all numbers to at least 5;
? addition doubles of all numbers to at least 10, eg 4 + 4.6+6
They are also expected to be able to use the following strategies
? count on or back in ones;
? reorder numbers in a calculation;
? begin to bridge through 10, and later 20, when adding a single-digit number;
? use known number facts and place value to add or subtract pairs of single-digit numbers;
? add 9 to single-digit numbers by adding 10 then subtracting 1;
? identify near doubles, using doubles already known;
? use patterns of similar calculations.
We have a similar "list" for each year group, your school probably has something similar!

PS, if you tell me the year group, I can post ours with the health warning that your own school might have a slightly different list!

Thanks so much Primarymum. The list looks really useful (my DS just leaving Yr1) but also, I think, highlights part of my own personal problem with the whole thing. I'm not easily getting to grips with the language. What does "reorder numbers in a calculation" mean? And for "use known number facts and place value to add or subtract pairs of single-digit numbers" does that mean that if you have, say, 48-23, you know that 4-2 =2 and 8 - 3 = 5, so, therefore the answer is 25? Have I got that right???!!

It's a great and helpful list, despite my lack of understanding! I will check if my school produces such a thing.

Reorder numbers in a calculation means that, if say you have 12+31+18, you would calculate 12+18 first ( as 2 and 8 are number bonds to 10 which you SHOULD know!) and then add on the 31. Your example would be a good explanation of using place value for subtracting 2 digit numbers, for single digits, if you had say 8+5, you know that 5=2+3 and 8+2=10, 10+3=13 ( these are some of your number facts from the initial list!)Incidently mental maths is simply using facts you know, to help with your calculations, it doesn't mean you shouldn't make jottings or write things down!

YVW squashpie

can't help but think of maths really, 'tis my passion. but you probably guessed that

interesting about the book being quite general. I haven't ordered it myself as DD too young and it'll all have changed by the time she gets to the right age! it is so confusing though, my DSDs are 12 and throughout primary they got taught so many different techniques, it was quite frustrating at times.

"Reorder numbers in a calculation" ... this sort of jargon drives me nuts. My dc (5) came home the other day talking about 'number sentences'. I said to her 'what do you mean?' My husband looks up and says 'I think she means 'sums' - you know, 2+2=4, etc.' .

Calculation is rather more precise than sums, a sum is an addition, a calculation is addition, subtraction, multiplication or division. I get rather annoyed when I hear "Can you do your take away sums"( But then I can be rather pedantic about maths vocabulary! So "reorder numbers in a calculation" means just that!
Number sentences can simply mean 2+2=4, it can also mean 2+[]=4 or 4=[]+2, you might need to check!

you may need to do 'related number sentences' for example given 3 x 4 = 12 you could do the related division sums 12 / 3 = 4 and 12 / 4 = 3

mathsmadmummy - my head is spinning

But that's what is so much fun about maths, once you know one thing you know so many more

mathsmadmummy my head is spinning as well.

Primarymum, what techniques do you use to teach a 5year old those please? My dd's targets for year 1 are number bonds for 10,doubling and halving etc. I feel it is a little too much for 5year olds??? Or do they just have to memorize these?
Thanks!

Number bonds to 10 are what we were given 10 fingers for! Just play hide and seek, if you put 4 fingers up, how many are hiding? Lots of repetition unitl your dd starts to remember the pairs of numbers which go together. For doubling start with 1 finger on one hand, one on the other, how man y altogether, so double 1 is 2, ( the rhyme about "Fly away Peter, Fly away Paul!helps ) When she has the idea, use two fingers on each hand, we also draw butterflies or ladybirds with spots, the same on each side to reinforce the idea of the same number added to itself. There are also lots of online games you can play too, woodlands-junior is a lovely site with lots of links to games and exercises to help!

DS1 is just leaving yr1. we were given very detailed lists, similar to what primarymum posted, at the beginning of the year.

we are given 'what we are doing this term' for each subject each year with detailed tips/hints and worked examples for maths and a talk in later years (yr 3 onwards I think) on how maths is taught these days so we don't confuse them too much and get frustrated when they don't do long multiplication the way we did in the dark ages...suggest ask school for more detail

Primarymum

I would be interested in seeing the maths "list" for Y2 if you would not mind.

Thanks

TP

Primarymum

I would be interested in seeing the maths "list" for Y2 if you would not mind.

Thanks

TP

hello again,
Primarymum, I would love to see the list for YR2 as well, please, if you have the time to post it up. I did ask the school for their maths strategies for the various years and the lady in the office said she'd get someone to ring me back but nothing as yet. Though I dare say they're v busy at this time of year. It would be great to know what kind of thing to expect and prepare for, whilst we're trying to catch up with the year 1 stuff.

Thanks a lot if you can.

Thank you very much primarymum. I am so very old school that I know nothing of these methods. End up getting frustrated teaching dd

Sorry, School play tonight, I've just got in! In yr 2 we expect our children to recall rapidly
-addition and subtraction facts for all numbers to at least 10;
? all pairs of numbers with a total of 20, eg 13 + 7;
? all pairs of multiples of 10 with a total of 100, eg 30 + 70;
? multiplication facts for the 2,5 and 10 times-tables and
corresponding division facts;
? doubles of all numbers to 20 and the corresponding halves;
and to use the following strategies when working mentally
-count on or back in tens or ones;
? find a small difference by counting up from the smaller to the larger number;
? reorder numbers in a calculation;
? add three small numbers by putting the largest number first and/or find a pair totalling 10;
? partition additions into tens and units then recombine;
? bridge through 10 or 20;
? use known number facts and place value to add or subtract pairs of numbers;
? partition into ?5 and a bit? when adding 6, 7, 8 or 9, then recombine;
? add or subtract 9, 19, 11 or 21 by rounding and compensating;
? identify near doubles;
? use patterns of similar calculations;
? use the relationship between addition and subtraction;
? use knowledge of number facts and place value to multiply or divide by 2, 5 or 10;
? use doubles and halves and halving as the inverse of doubling

Hope this helps!

Primarymum, you are a complete star. That is so helpful: thank you, thank you .