Why is TURN the Tables motivating?

TURN the Tables is motivating because students are successful from the beginning of the program through to the end of the program. Students are never confronted with multiplying problems with which they have not had prior practice. Each section (i.e. The 2s, The 3s) includes multi-digit problems to reinforce the facts which gives students added confidence and ability as they are slowly guided through the process of learning higher levels of multiplication to mastery. Every section includes two, three and four-digit numbers times the number being studied (i.e. The 2s). Students are not stifled by needing to take test after test to pass each set of facts and never having the opportunity to calculate multi-digit problems until they have mastered all of the facts. Students feel great accomplishment by calculating multi-digit problems as their peers who have been able to move on do after mastering the basic multiplication facts.

How is the methodology used in TURN the Tables different than traditional ways to teach the multiplication facts?

TURN the Tables gives students an explicit strategy and tools which incorporates multiple senses to master the multiplication facts. Students do not progress to the next set of facts until they have mastered the facts cumulatively. The most common way that the multiplication facts are taught is by simply giving timed tests. When a student passes a timed test on The 3s, he/she takes tests on The 4s until the test is passed and continues this pattern until he/she has passed up through The 10s or 12s. What oftentimes happens is that students do not retain the facts and by the time they get to The 5s, they have forgotten The 2s, 3s and 4s. They are only retaining the facts until they pass the test. They are not given a concrete way to recall the facts.

Why is relying on counting to get the answers detrimental?

The primary reason why counting to get the answers is detrimental is because it does not give students the tools it takes to master the facts and get a good conceptual understanding of the association between adding and subtracting. Children need an opportunity to attain a good conceptual understanding of the operations of adding and subtracting. A solid understanding of putting parts together and taking them apart is fundamental to establishing a strong foundation needed to be proficient with adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing, fractions, percents, decimals, algebra and more. Adding and subtracting is a stepping stone to other operations and concepts. By counting children can get the right answer but as they progress through the grades they must rely not only on mastery of the addition and subtraction facts but on the concept of parts and wholes. Children usually learn to count when they are 4 or 5 years old. When children begin to learn adding and subtracting, they must be introduced to the concept of putting parts together and taking them apart.

Another important factor about the importance of mastering the math facts, rather than counting, is that it takes much longer to count than to have the answers at automatic recall. The necessity to count causes children to have a hard time completing assignments and tests in a reasonable amount of time. Additionally, if children are occupied with counting to get adding and subtracting answers, they are not able to give their full attention and focus to learning new concepts.

Lastly, counting becomes a habit that is hard to break. The sooner children master the math facts, the less likely they will develop the habit of counting and consequently the need to break it. Children and adults only count when they do not know the answer. It is always better to know the answer than to have to stop and figure it out. Counting is a linear way to simply get answers to adding and subtracting problems.

What makes Add to Subtract and TURN the Tables multisensory methods?

The senses of sight, hearing and touch plus rhythm and rhyme are used to help create associations to the math facts. By using multiple senses simultaneously it gives children numerous pathways to the brain to recall the math facts. Research has proven that the more we incorporate our senses into the learning process the better our chances of accessing our long term memory and therefore, the more efficient the learning process becomes. All students can be successful with a multisensory method of teaching. Students are presented with colorful and creative pictures, shapes and charts, an auditory and rhythmic way of learning the facts and numerous manipulatives for a tactile approach to learning the facts.

What are the benefits of learning the addition and subtraction facts from Ways That Work?

Children learn the adding and subtracting facts through the sums to 18 and the related subtracting facts by using their brain rather than simply relying on counting methods. Children are given explicit strategies to learn and retain the adding and subtracting facts. The methodology incorporates a conceptual approach to learning the math facts to give students an understanding of putting parts together and taking them apart. Children become empowered when they realize that they can memorize the math facts and no longer need to count to get the answers.

What will my child lose by not taking The Addition and Subtraction Facts 10-18 class?

Your child will not have the opportunity to learn the tools to commit the remainder of the adding and subtracting facts to memory. More likely than not, he/she will go back to counting. When children do not have the tools to master the remaining facts they will be confronted with many math facts which they do not know and once again they will associate failure with math. This failure and disappointment will transfer to other academic and non-academic areas in his/her life. After putting all the work and effort into becoming proficient with The Facts to 9 they will still feel that they are incompetent with math but that is because they did not have the opportunity to complete the program and learn the remainder of the facts.

I do not have time at home to reinforce the Add to Subtract method. Is it worth the time and financial commitment to continue with the second class of the program?

Yes. I do my best to attend to students' strengths and challenges individually. For every two-hour class your child attends he/she will be exposed to various ways to master the facts. Now that your child has been learning the Add to Subtract method for the past 9 weeks, he/she will be able to absorb the new facts at a faster pace. Students who were struggling at the end of a Facts to 9 class become more proficient with the math facts with each day of The Addition and Subtraction Facts 10-18 class.

Why is it important to master the math facts and stop counting?

Ask any parent of a student in fourth grade and above how their child is doing in math. If the parent says that their child is struggling in math it is most likely because they never mastered the addition, subtraction and multiplication facts. MATH BECOMES EXTREMELY CHALLENGING WHEN STUDENTS DO NOT HAVE A SOLID FOUNDATION IN MATH AND THAT BEGINS WITH MASTERING THE ADDING AND SUBTRACTING FACTS.

Ask any teacher in fourth grade and above what their greatest challenge is in teaching math. They will tell you that it is that their students do not know the basic math facts. I have had high school math teachers tell me the same thing. If math is challenging now, it will only get more challenging and frustrating as your child moves on from grade to grade. A student can slide by through third grade without mastering the facts, even though they will be frustrated and feel themselves falling behind, but starting in fourth grade math will become more and more difficult to keep up with as students are expected to apply the math facts to multi-step math concepts.

Why shouldn't I let my child learn the remaining facts at school rather than take The Addition and Subtraction Facts 10-18 class?

Unfortunately, most schools put little emphasis on teaching students methods to master the basic math facts. They are depending on parents to teach the math facts. Most teachers and parents instruct kids to count if they do not know the answer. Children do not learn the math facts by counting. They only get the answers. They cannot establish a solid foundation in math by counting. There is not time to count as children progress from grade to grade. In addition to the time element, they need to have a solid conceptual understanding of the operations of adding and subtracting to progress to more complex math concepts.

Why should I continue having my child learn the Ways That Work method rather than let him/her go back to counting?

Most children learn to count by the time they are 5 years old. It is important for children to learn to count and understand the relationship between numbers and quantities. When kids begin learning the operations of addition and subtraction they must learn the concept of putting numbers together and taking them apart. If they continue to count they will be able to get the correct answer but all they will be doing is counting, something they probably learned to do when they were 4 or 5 years old. They will not be learning the concept of addition and subtraction. If you have seen your child start using his/her brain rather than his/her fingers to get the answers, stay with the Add to Subtract program. You will see that your child will be one of the few students in his/her class who is not counting and has truly mastered the facts.

Why should I enroll my child in The Addition & Subtraction Facts 10-18 class to complete the two-class addition and subtraction program?

At the end of The Facts to 9 class your child is less than half way through the addition and subtraction program. Many students do not fully comprehend how adding and subtracting are related until after they have been in The Facts 10-18 class for some time. Throughout The Facts 10-18 class I will continue to review the facts that we went over in The Facts to 9 class. As students progress through the two-class addition and subtraction program they will continue to get a clearer understanding of the relationship between adding and subtracting and learn the tools to become proficient with the operations of addition and subtraction.