My 2Nd Grade Son Hates Math!

I totally understand!! My 3rd grader still hates multiplication facts He just doesn't like sitting still and repeating himself. Two things that have helped. One he does one number set repeated 2x with the answers. It's mainly for repetition learning.

Does he like music? I've gotten the 3rd grader and 4th grader to start memorizing by using a CD "Hip Hop Math" http://www.songsforteaching.com/math/multiplicationsongs.htm
I can't find the site I used, but the one above has a variety of styles. I wake them up with the CD.

Hi!
You have gotten some great ideas. I am one who feels that learning should and can be fun, unlike most of the school day. I really like the music ideas you have been given. Also, there are teacher supplies stores around and sometimes they have games. Also, many years ago when my daughter was little (4) she had a small calcultor that was really a game. She wouldn't move on to level 2 for a really long time, because she couldn't get 10 out of 10. She was a math major in college. Maybe you could ask him if there is anything at school that they do that is fun.

My son has a hard time memorizing the math facts from flashcards or straight learning them. He finally learned his addition facts in second grade just by using them over and over. He understands the concepts up to around fifth grade math but just couldn't get down the addition/ multiplication facts.
Using it over and over got them into his head when nothing else would.
Get some fun worksheets or make up a game board. Draw a squiggly line on a page of paper. You get to move forward one step if you can correctly multiply the numbers on the dice? It helped us.
Good Luck.

Hi
Do you have a Leapster? My son LOVES Jedi Math.
Good luck

Hi there N..
It looks like you are getting some pretty good ideas - I wanted to hopefully put one more suggestion out there: musical instrument.
I used to be a math tutor to a couple sisters that were in the same situation as your son. I brought over my piano key board as a reward. Homework first and if there was time we used sheet music to learn a new song on the keyboard. On weekends I would leave my keyboard there and let the girls teach themselves a song too. It took about a month, but Mom started to see results/behavior changes directly towards homework.
Any intrument works (see what he likes.) Music and math are directly linked and it can possibly help your son.
Either way - I hope that you find a solution. I will be thinking about you both and praying for a successful outcome.
P.

Hi there,

Aspects of math are developmental and it may be that he is just not ready to learn some of these concepts, multiplication being one of them. Have you spoken to his teacher? She should have some thoughts. I would also request that m child be tested for learning issues. I know second grade is young to get accurate test scores, but there may be some underlying issue here that is causing him to dislike it so much. If he is found to have some sort of issues then he will be entitled to any number of programs etc that will be more to his learning skills. This does not mean he's "dumb". In fact, often kids with learning issues are very bright.

In my experience kids are under way too much pressure way to young. Perhaps there is some way to ease that - again address that with the teacher. Did you ask your son what the issue is?

Having said that there is something called the Multiplicaton rap. It's the math facts set to a rap song. Google it, it might help him.

Hi N.!

I have several ideas that might be helpful...

First, you might try the video/dvd "Multiplication Rock." It's part of the Schoolhouse Rock series and it has some catchy tunes for the multiplication tables. Perhaps your son will find it more fun if he can sing them...and make up his own tunes for the numbers not covered.

Second, you might kick around on the Internet and see if you can find some fun mulitplication games (there are tons and many are free).

Third, if your son is more of a puzzle guy, try googling "puzzlemaker." You'll be able to create puzzles based around multiplication.

Last but not least, try playing the card game "war" as a multiplication exercise. When you both put your cards down, whoever wins has to correctly multiply the face value of the two cards to win the round.

Then, there's the boring stand by of plain old educational discipline. He needs to know them. It's a must. If students don't solidly know their basic math facts (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division), without a calculator, they start failing math about the 7-8th grade and never really recover. This makes it extremely difficult to learn higher level math, not to mention passing exit/proficiency exams to graduate from high school. I teach high school and not knowing basic math is number reason kids flunk the math proficiency exams and the number one complaint of the entire math department.

Good luck!

Have you talked to his teacher for suggestions?
Or, maybe an after school tutor?
Or trying "Kumon" classes? Lots of kids at my daughter's school go to Kumon. They have a website too www.kumon.com

Maybe he doesn't understand it, so then he doesn't like it?
Maybe it is more than just memorizing for him... some kids find that boring... but, if he's starting to "hate" school in general... are there OTHER difficulties he is having?

Try and talk with him, openly and non-critically... see what he says honestly. See what is giving him trouble... why he hates school "in general." Perhaps there are other factors involved.

See what his Teacher says... how is he in class? With Peers? Overall? Happy or not? Struggling or not? Attentive or not? Cooperative or not? Bored or not? Underachieving or not? Perhaps overachieving?

See what is really going on, in the "big picture." Maybe it's not JUST multiplication?

All the best,
Susan

Hi N.,
I completely understand. I taught 2nd grade for many years and those math facts can be a real bear. In addition to flash cards, I used CDs to teach my students the math facts. There is one for rock and roll and rap (the rock and roll was more ear friendly for me). I would play it any time we had down-time, right before math, and when they were doing independent work. Those facts eventually sank in. Here is the website of the CDs I used: www.rocknlearn.com These can easily be played in the car when traveling to school, soccer games, etc. Eventually you can have him sing the song that he's learning without the music and see if he can sing it faster. That will ensure that he's mastered those facts.
There are also some great computer games for kids that will allow them to move to the next level when they've mastered a skill. The Reader Rabbit series is a little dated, but the kids seemed to enjoy it and it did help them master those skills.

Hi, N.,

I was a math teacher for over ten years. I recommend taking your son to an educational supply store such as Lakeshore Learning Center and letting him choose a multiplication workbook and a set of stickers he likes. (A lot of my students, even high school students, liked worksheets that encouraged the student to color or required the student to solve a set of problems to find the answer to a riddle or to complete a story.) Whenever he completes a certain amount of work (a certain number of pages), you give him a calculator to check his work. (By doing this you help him develop calculator skills and the habit of checking his own work, a habit that benefits people in any subject and any job I can think of.) Then you discuss any problems he had with the work. After that you give him a sticker and praise him for spending the extra time learning. I've told my high school students that they don't have to learn the multiplication tables to survive, but their lives will be a lot easier if they do. I ask them to imagine their lives if they had to look up their names or phone numbers every time someone asked them for those facts.

If after a few months you don't see any progress, then try to get your son tested at Sylvan Learning Center if possible. If it seems as though your son is lagging, then consider tutoring. Sometimes students learn more quickly and easily from people other than their parents and teachers, even if their parents and teachers are excellent mathematicians and teachers.

As some people have already mentioned, try to find out if anything other than his performance in math is making his experience at school unpleasant.

Good luck,
Lynne E

http://www.raisingsmallsouls.com/

For the most part, reputition will help him memorize them. Just take it slowly and he wil be fine. Every night, practice a number set with him for 3 weeks. Generally it take 21 times for the brain to remember something. So practice the 5's 21 times, providing him the answer and he should start to remember them.

Best of luck.
C.

Read the book DISCOVER YOUR CHILD's LEARNING STYLE to figure how what he best responds to. Is he an auditory learner (might respond best to songs/rhymes), kinesthetic/movement (might respond best to shooting hoops while learning the times table)... and so on.

http://www.learningsuccessinstitute.com/

It's a GREAT book and all parents and teachers should read it.

The trick that worked for learning multiplication for my daughter was a website

http://www.multiplication.com
games page:
http://www.multiplication.com/interactive_games.htm

The games were self motivating and my daughter has her favorites. There are a wide variety so there should be something that will appeal to him.

This was a tough area for my oldest son too, but I used his competitive spirit and it worked great! I made flash cards with the problem on the front and the answer on the back. To make it a game against Mom, I'd put the stack of flashcards in the center of the kitchen table with the problem up. If he got the answer right, he got the card. If he was wrong, Mom got the card! Oh, how he hated to see me get more cards than him! I would show him the correct answer on the back before I took the card into my pile (and tease him a little saying "Yes! It's mine!!). He worked hard to memorize during the game so he got it right the next time! I would start the game over with just my Mom cards, and we would run through them again. More often than not, he'd get it right the second time (if he was struggling, I'd give him just the time it took me to sing the Jeopardy! thinking song). It seemed like it was only a few days before he was getting all the cards (and he loved to hear me complain about losing my cards!). I would also use "down time" in the car to quiz him verbally, but he didn't like this as much. I used flash cards after that for many tests, putting the question on the front and the answer on the back. It seemed to help him to have something to hold that he could learn from. Hope this helps!

Hi, I haven't read the other posts yet, so hope this isn't a duplicate.

Numerous studies have shown that participation in music and art actuallly increases aptitude in math for children. Unfortunately, despite this evidence, music and art are among the first programs to be eliminated in budget cuts.

However, there are so many ways to get around this. There are lots of free or low-cost activities around with arts and crafts, art classes, etc. Or, you can create a weekly art day in your home. Make sock puppets, make pictures with pudding, do projects with macaroni, ANYTHING that allows your little guy to just express himself.

Maybe finding ways to add more art and music (right brain activities) to your child's schedule on a regular basis may help him in things like math (left brain activities).

You might try Google searches for more ideas.
Wishing you much success.
D.

N., I highly recommend H.E.L.P. (The Hollywood Education and Literacy Project)located here in Hollywood. It is a free program and they will truly show your son how to study successfully. I suggest scheduling a free tour to find out more.

Here's their data:

Hollywood Education Literacy Project International
6336 Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood CA 90028
###-###-####
http://www.helplearn.org/index-flash.html

Life is magical when you know how to study!

With love,
L. (MAMA to 14 month old Dylan Orion.......29 September 2007) : )))

flash cards, and make a game of it, after a couple weeks of practicing the flashcards daily, then put them all over the talbe and say go, you both say the answer to the one you are looking at if you got it right you get to keep it, if you don't get the answer right then you stick it in a diffrent pile and when the game is over put out the missed ones and continue, if he is racing you this becomes a challenge and is fun, include the other kids. I'm sure they could use the practice. J.

Jump Start has great computer programs for each grade level. When we had the joy of learning the multiplication facts, my daughter made homemade flash cards. is there an incentive. My daughters teacher did an ice cream party-earned a scoop, sprinkles, etc. for each level passed. You can do that at home.

Try making it competitive. If there's a prize - stickers, books, whatever he thinks would be cool, you might be able to motivate him. My husband was an average student up to 4th grade, but his math teacher created a competition - for a jar of jellybeans of all things - and my husband's competitive spirit kicked in and he went on to be a 4.0 all the way through school and was a math/engineering major at Northwestern U.

Good luck and let the games begin!

M.

Can you remember the last time you memorized something? Do you still remember it? Chances are that you didn't really "learn" it, you just memorized it and it went away. This is what happens to kids when they memorize all year and then they forget everything over the summer. Now remember a time when you really LEARNED something. Once you've learned your name, you don't forget it. Once you've really learned and understand how to count, you don't forget to count. Our goal when we learn is to be able to APPLY what we learn. If you can add when you are working on your homework but then can't add the number of cars on the street, you are not applying what you've learned, therefore it wasn't really leanred. Your son has a problem with multiplication because he didn't really understand the math leading up to multiplication and/or the vocabulary associated with multiplication. He's got misunderstood words, math words that he doesn't understand, in multiplication. If you need help with finding out what he doesn't understand, send me a message so we can chat. I work with students with these types of problems and it's usually a really simple fix.

This may not be the healthiest advice, but use candy. make a multiplication game out of M & M's or Skittles. Break it down for him so he can visualize it. When he gets an equasion correct reward him by letting him eat the answer.

Schoolhouse Rock is awesome!!! Check it out, they sell the DVD's at Target!
Good luck!

My SON loved doing workbook pages and reading. After 1 year in kindergarten, he hated to learn anything, so we pulled him out and started homeschooling him. It took about 4 months, but he's back in learning and loving it. He just turned 6 and reads like a champ. He takes books everywhere with him and is asking tons of questions again. Homeschooling is WAY easier than I thought it would be.

My husband and I tag team - especially with the math. Sometiems he doesn't get what I'm trying to explain to him, so I have my husband come in and Michael will get it....and vice versa. He's in 1st grade, but has zoomed through 2nd grade math and pretty much everything else.

We found that he was bored in school, even though he was in a very challenging school...but it just wasn't right for him...at this moment.

I also work and have 3 children: 6, 2, and 8 months.

Maybe a hand on approach would work better for him. Memorizing formulas is so dry and boring! Maybe he needs a more tactile way of learning multiplication formulas at first. You can use marbles, matchbox cars, legos, or whatever else you have around, and group them into 1's, 2's, 3's and so on, and have him do the math -- 1 x 1 matchbox car = 1, 2 x 2 marbles = 4, 6 x 3 sets of marbles = 18, and so forth. Take him shopping and have him figure out how much it will cost to buy 1 Star Wars action figure for $3 vs. 2 @ $3, 3 @ $3 and so on.

I've seen reports that indicated that boys learn in action and girls are much better at learning by hearing. This may be the case with your son. In any event, the shopping excursion should give him a sound basis for dealing with the real world and what it is like being an adult with today's market and economy.

If you do try out this tactic and it does work, please let me know because I have a son who is 2 years behind yours and I suspect I will be needing the same answers pretty soon.

Good luck.

L.

Is he dyslexic? Maybe it just doesn't make any sense to him. He may need another style of teaching. Has anyone determined his learning style? I have a hard memorizing anything. It is like torture to me. I never learned my multiplication tables. I have a calculator with me at all times. Don't try to force this on him, find out why he is this this way.

Hi N.,
I tutored math for 7 years and the one thing I found is that you have to help him relate math to his own needs. Multiplication is trully a memory game. If you can tie it to money, it helps. Get pennies, dimes, nickles, even quarters, and silver dollars. It can be real coins or you can even use paper money or play dollars, or if you have the time the two of you could make up your own dollars and make copies. He can help you cut them out. Regardless, relating math to money should peak his interest. He can learn his 1s, 5s, 10s and you can then have him stack pennies by 2s, 3s, up to the 9s. Help him see how 3s, 6s, and 9s relate, also, 2s, 4s, 6s, 8s, and 10s. Once he's having success with relationships now used index cards with the problem and put the answer on another card. Started with what he does know like 1s, 10s, 5s. Get one card should read 2 X 2 = and another separate card should have the numeral 4. Have he stack the pennies on the card. 2x2 should have 2 pennies and 2 pennies stacked. 6X7 should have 7 stacks of 6 pennies. Once this concept is mastered, I used these cards as a concentration game. If he turns over the 3X5= he should announce he's looking for 15. Even though he may pick up the number 9 or 6x8= He unknowingly has reinforced the answer to the problem. If he turns over a 4 first, now he can announce that he is looking for 2X2 or 4x1. You'll have to reinforce these concepts by repeating the proper answer if he comes up with incorrect answer.If he know 2X2=4 but can't recall 2X3 teach him some logic. "Well how much is 2 stacks of 2 pennies?" "4" "Right" so how many more pennies would you need to get to 3 stacks of 2 pennies?" By helping him see how these numbers relate to each other, he'll develope the skills needed to master multiplication. Tell him you want him to win the game by finding either. Finally, I found my students were far more interested in numbers when it relates to money. Remind him if he doesn't know his multiplacation tables he will never know if he got paid correctly or if there is a sale on a car or even toys, how will he ever know if he got his discount, or how much more something really is once you add the sales tax. Have him put his little toys in plastic baggies by separate them in lots of 2S through 9s. Make sure he'll have to apply multiplcation to figure out how many toys were needed for each project. Don't prolong these sessions. Let him stack pennies before you get home from work and praise him with his efforts. Rewarding with food or cash is far less effective as showing praise and telling him how bright he is and how you knew he could do that. "So can I show you the magic of 9s". It's been 30 years sinced I tutored math in school but you'll find helping him relate math to how he'll need it in the future as an adult will make a difference in his attitude about math.

BTW: I learned my multiplication tables in one day. My teacher wrote my dad that I could fail 3rd grade if I didn't learn them. He cut out the multiplication table from a PeeCee folder and told me I could not watch TV, leave my room, or play until I had them down pat. He made me memorize the 11s and 12s too. He would quiz me every morning on all of them and once he was convinced I had them down. He would throw 5 to 10 problems at me any time he felt like it especially just before he left for work. I had to say 6X8=48 and 48=8X6. If I didn't say it fluently, da-di-da-da-da, I was grounded again till he came home. It doesn't have to be that way. But I knew if I didn't learn it he would keep me grounded everyday until I did. Consistency was his secret.

If spelling could be as logical as math, I might have become a teacher. For give my mispellings.

Good Luck ~ F.
PS, I'm no longer working outside the home. I've safely lost 38 pound and over 11 inches off my waist in 11 weeks of active dieting. I've been wheelchair bound for 11 years and am now walking up to 3 minutes unassisted. if you know of anyone who needs to safely loose weight or to healthfully get more energy and more, please give them my number: ###-###-#### Thanks :^D

Well, my only suggestion is for nine x's. Show him the finger trick. you hold your hands facing you, and count from left to right. if it is 9x1 put the thumb down, that leaves nine fingers so 9x1=9. 9x2 you put the forefinger down and see what is left, one on the left and eight on the right of the downed finger leaves 18, so 9x2=18. on the left side is the ten space and on the right is the ones space... it works all the way to ten... It is really easy and helped me finally get 9's...
Good luck
R.

Hi N.,

My kids loved learning with interactive computer games, such as Treasure Mountain, Operation Neptune and 2nd (3rd, 4th, 5th, etc.) grade Adventures. I think you can still find most of these games on Amazon (they're from the early 1990's). The games did not teach the math facts specifically. You had to enter in correct answers to progress through the game. Often, movement was dependent on how fast you entered the correct answer. This gave the kids impetus to master all of the math functions as quickly as possible. BTW, I also highly recommend such games as Reader Rabbit, Logical Journey of the Zoombinis, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego and Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego. I even enjoyed playing these games with my kids, and I have an MS!

Making learning fun for the sake of learning is key. It's better to have your son learn the intrinsic value of learning rather than learn only because you reward him.

R.