Sep 28 2015
Exciting time for MisterNumbers Pattern Play Math expanding in two directions
The idea of playing with numbers goes against the serious nature of most math teaching, but it is actually much more effective than grind memorization. Kids get excited, have fun, generate a positive attitude about math, develop curiosity and learn to see and look for underlying patterns everywhere: the basis for learning for a lifetime.
SQUARES
This is an exciting time for Pattern Play Math expanding in two directions. The revolutionary video on Squaring any Number Mentally is below.Squares created the easy way by MisterNumbers Pattern Play Math
There is much more on using the system for finding Square Roots, creating the 20×20 Times Table, and multiplying numbers mentally.
Squares go right through the biggest numbers on the times tables and make it easy to multiply the larger numbers together, which is where students tend to struggle most.
And it is all done with addition, not multiplication.
ADDITION ON THE NUMBER WHEEL
But I am also excited about the other direction: New Patterns for Basic Addition on Number Wheels. I found many high school students struggle with basic addition and found some fascinating and powerful images using number wheels that could help pre-school through 2nd graders have fun memorizing addition/subtraction facts. This is great because when they come to multiplication/division, they are already comfortable with the simple number wheels.
Additon direction came AFTER squares. Creating Squares is a ADDITION process, and creating the multiplication tables or individual math facts both also involve addition. As I worked with students, even Calculus students, I found that many of them struggled with basic addition. Relying on cell phones as calculators may be one reason basic math is suffering.
The two tools using Number Wheels for anchoring addition are ways to add 5 to any number, and Number Wheels that show the cool patterns of numbers that add up (in the Ones) to 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1. The Ten-Adds are Horizontal parallel lines and Five-Adds are Vertical parallel lines. ALL ADDITION is within 2 of these lines. If a student can “see” the numbers on the wheel and their relative position, they can “see” the Ones part of the answer.