Unschooling multiplication story
Jen
I was watching a bunch of Kahn Academy videos this morning and I thought it might be fun to invite my 12 year old son to watch some with me. I had sent him the link to the Khan Academy before, but was pretty sure he hadn't looked at the site on his own.
After scrolling through the vast list of topics, he settled on the "Developmental Math" category. My son really likes playing around with numbers, and when he gets that generic, "What's your favorite subject?" question from someone, he almost always says "Math," which I find so funny and awesome.
We were looking through the topics and I asked him if he remembered how to multiply two digit numbers. We had seen a video of a man who did it by using a method where you put the numbers on a kind of grid, hard to explain in words but if you are interested, it looks like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSqDIcPSXLY&feature=plcp&context=C3c85a4cUDOEgsToPDskJHckG9EwHn9Il5jpW5mgoY
He said he remembered how to multiply two digit numbers. I said, "Can you show me?" And I wrote down 27 x 33, (but I wrote it one number on top of the other, not in a line like I just typed it.) Then I grabbed the calculator and punched the numbers in so I'd have the answer.
I expected him to draw the grid and start working on it, but he just sat there. After a little while I said, "You don't remember how to do it?" and he said, "I'm doing it."
Maybe 20 seconds later he said, "891."
I showed him the calculator. It felt like a magician's reveal, like "is this your card?" We both got tickled and laughed and laughed. I asked him to explain to me how he got his answer. It took a few times of him explaining for me to grasp what he did and how he got the right answer. Basically he multiplied 33 x 30 in his head and got 990, then subtracted 99, because 27 is 3 less than thirty, or 3 33s less. All this in his head.
Just wanted to share one of those great unschooling moments.
Jennie
After scrolling through the vast list of topics, he settled on the "Developmental Math" category. My son really likes playing around with numbers, and when he gets that generic, "What's your favorite subject?" question from someone, he almost always says "Math," which I find so funny and awesome.
We were looking through the topics and I asked him if he remembered how to multiply two digit numbers. We had seen a video of a man who did it by using a method where you put the numbers on a kind of grid, hard to explain in words but if you are interested, it looks like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSqDIcPSXLY&feature=plcp&context=C3c85a4cUDOEgsToPDskJHckG9EwHn9Il5jpW5mgoY
He said he remembered how to multiply two digit numbers. I said, "Can you show me?" And I wrote down 27 x 33, (but I wrote it one number on top of the other, not in a line like I just typed it.) Then I grabbed the calculator and punched the numbers in so I'd have the answer.
I expected him to draw the grid and start working on it, but he just sat there. After a little while I said, "You don't remember how to do it?" and he said, "I'm doing it."
Maybe 20 seconds later he said, "891."
I showed him the calculator. It felt like a magician's reveal, like "is this your card?" We both got tickled and laughed and laughed. I asked him to explain to me how he got his answer. It took a few times of him explaining for me to grasp what he did and how he got the right answer. Basically he multiplied 33 x 30 in his head and got 990, then subtracted 99, because 27 is 3 less than thirty, or 3 33s less. All this in his head.
Just wanted to share one of those great unschooling moments.
Jennie
Marie
That's awesome. He has actually a complex understanding of not just basic math but the properties of multiplication. That's a building block for Algebra and other higher level math.
Marie
Marie
chris ester
My daughter loves numbers and calculation and recently has said that she
wants to investigate what accountants do because she may want to be an
accountant when she grows up.
I giggle about this because we haven't done very much formal math, we just
have a bunch of math books and have done lots of budgeting and baking. :)
Chris
wants to investigate what accountants do because she may want to be an
accountant when she grows up.
I giggle about this because we haven't done very much formal math, we just
have a bunch of math books and have done lots of budgeting and baking. :)
Chris
On Tue, Feb 7, 2012 at 2:21 PM, Marie <empwrn@...> wrote:
> **
>
>
> That's awesome. He has actually a complex understanding of not just basic
> math but the properties of multiplication. That's a building block for
> Algebra and other higher level math.
>
> Marie
>
>
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
D-H Family
My favorite multiplication story is about my friend who is an accountant but
who never learned her multiplication tables. It hasn't stopped her from a
career in math!
Molly
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who never learned her multiplication tables. It hasn't stopped her from a
career in math!
Molly
------------------------------------
Yahoo! Groups Links