A quick, free math tutoring video explaining why “fact families” are an inefficient and confusing way to help children memorize and understand addition and subtraction facts. Number bonds, or the whole/parts method, is much more understandable and easy to remember.
I remember feeling overwhelmed in elementary school by fact families. It seemed like so much to remember! I was seeing them as lots of separate pieces of information. Number bonds would have made it so much easier!
Symbols are very abstract and can be confusing to children. Pictures are much more easily stored in our minds. Take advantage of this knowledge by using Cuisenaire Rods to help teach addition and subtraction.
This free math tutoring video shows a fun activity to do if you have wooden Cuisenaire Rods. Learn your addition and subtraction fact families while you play – no worksheets needed! And no writing involved for preschoolers or kids with dysgraphia! A few minutes a day of this is all you’ll need to have your facts within 10 memorized!
This free math tutoring video shows a fun activity to help kids learn the number bonds (or fact families) to 10 using Cuisenaire Rods and Hundred Flats from a Base Ten set. This is so much more fun and effective than drill of addition and subtraction facts! And, it not only teaches them their math facts, but it gives them a conceptual framework as well – something that will NOT happen if they are primarily working with symbols on paper, which is all too common.
Another great thing about this activity is that it is self correcting. If they are doing a “seven” tower and try to use a 4-rod and a 2-rod, their tower is going to fall. This also enforces that 5+2 or 6+1 or 3+4 will ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS be 7. This is not always clear to children – especially if they are used to counting on their fingers or doing Touch Math.
This game/activity incorporates the auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learning styles. Effective and fun!
You will need a small group set of Cuisenaire Rods (not the connecting kind) and a set of Base Ten Hundred flats (which you can purchase by themselves without having to buy the rest of a Base Ten set).
