One of the things my very visual student struggles with is “doubles facts.” The concepts that 5+5=10, 2+2=4, etc.
When we have actual manipulatives in front of us, it makes complete sense. However, for memory, it does not stick. We have struggled with this since first grade in a public program. Our experience was that modern methods often do not have the repetition that we had when our generation were in younger grades.
Here’s a few things that are working for us to understand our “doubles facts”
Videos:
What did work: Math with Rocko. The visual cute puppet and catchy song help with making memorization fun.
https://youtu.be/qaqLjzMyyHI?si=6eIWnbWuz_kmOi5m
What did not work: Numberock. This was a very engaging and fun video, but she was so focused on all the different things going on that the math facts were lost amidst the business.
Doubles Song For Kids | Doubles Addition Facts | 1st Grade
Visuals:
What did work: Blocks and manipulatives. Seeing how blocks connect together, and they are visually equal groups.
What did not work: Flashcards. Plain numbers can be visually confusing, as opposed to actual objects.
What worked the very best:
Doubles and Halves Chatterboxes
This is a paid product from a maker on Teachers Pay Teachers. This worked the very best for us! It was busy, it engaged all the senses, and it turned it into a game. Easy to dowload, print, and play with.
Final Thoughts
It’s totally ok if your child is a little behind the curve on the basics, but we find that addressing them now is better than going on into more complex math without these foundations. There are some children who develop math skills a bit behind their peers, and learning styles and learning disabilities just means we need to get a bit more creative. In our experience, it’s best to “pause” to review, or implement a little bit every day, until mastery. It’s ok if it takes a while, just keep plugging along, and try to make it fun!
What resources have worked for you when teaching your child doubles facts?
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