This game in this free math tutoring video can be played without Cuisenaire Rods, but it would be especially valuable to use them with children who don’t yet have their multiplication tables memorized or don’t know how to figure out products without counting or using a chart.
This not only gets children practicing their multiplication facts, but also gets them adding large numbers as they keep track of their score, and there is some strategy involved as well in figuring out where to put the rectangles. Winner is the child with the most total points at the end of the game (when no more moves are available).
Another example of something you can do besides drill and kill to help your kids learn their multiplication facts!
The distributive property of multiplication enables children and adults to easily calculate multiplication facts – even if they’ve forgotten them because it’s been 30 years since elementary school! Oftentimes, skip counting and flashcard drill (or something similar) is the only way multiplication is taught in schools. Neither of these provides as clear of an understanding of our number system or how numbers relate as the distributive property. Using a visual model and manipulatives like Cuisenaire Rods provides a way for children to interact with multiplication in a whole new way.
An easy way to think of the distributive property is to just imagine (or actually do it with the Cuisenaire Rods) breaking numbers into chunks that are easier to calculate. This is represented quite clearly in this free math tutoring video where I introduce a little girl to the concept. Not all children will catch on this quickly, but I can guarantee they will catch on quicker with this method than with methods that emphasize drilling and memorization over understanding.
Most people are just taught that if you switch the numbers in a multiplication problem, the answer is the same. This free math tutoring video shows you visually in two ways WHY that is true. For the visual and kinesthetic learners out there, those who struggle with dyslexia or dyscalculia, or those who think they will never be able to understand math, this is how it should be taught!
