Long Division Help for an 8 Year-Old in Singapore Math 3A
What do you do when your 8 year-old is struggling with long division in Singapore Math 3A? Well, I was recently asked this, and it is a good question that others may have! So, I thought I’d share her question and my answer in this post, hoping it will help others too!
Her Question About Long Division Difficulties
My 8 year-old daughter is in Singapore Math 3A. She has typically found math quite easy, but we have reached a real stumbling block with long division. I’ve shown her multiple ways to do the problem in an effort to find a way that clicked with her. So far, it just hasn’t. I searched your blog posts for help and found one about not expecting the child to master every concept right away. This was really helpful because we have always tried to focus on “mastery not completion.”
Do you think I should just slow down until she masters long division? Or, should I skip long division for now and come back to it later? I know Singapore really builds on each concept though. I am concerned about moving ahead without mastering it. From your post, it sounds like she is not expected to master every concept right away, is that right? Would you suggest I sit with her and walk her through each problem until she is ready to do them on her own? Then move on to the next lesson when we are done? Any advice would be appreciated!
Responding to Long Division Difficulties for an 8 Year-Old
Singapore Math introduces many skills, so you are so right in noting that students need not master every skill immediately. The skills will come back around again and again, often times in reviews and always in subsequent levels. Long division, in particular, is a difficult skill initially, as it has so many steps. Singapore Math is considered a year advanced, so many third-grade students are doing 2A their first semester and 2B their second semester. So, as your daughter is only 8 years-old, you have multiple pacing options!
Responding to Long Division Difficulties for 8 Year-Old Students Who Don’t Have Their Facts Memorized
If your daughter doesn’t have her multiplication facts memorized, I would work on that for a portion of your math time each day. Click here for a blog post to help with fact memorization. For children ages eight to nine, about 20-30 minutes of daily math is a good amount of time (any less is not enough, any more is too much for attention spans). Click here for suggested time allotments for 8 year-olds in Heart of Dakota.
If working on facts would be helpful, I would follow the blog post I’ve shared and work on facts 10-15 minutes each day. Then, I would continue with the math lessons right where you are (long division) and work the problems with her step-by-step, getting as far as you get during the remaining 10-15 minutes of math. Stop wherever you are and pick up there the next day. This way, she will be working on her facts but also moving forward with her other math skills.
Responding to Long Division Difficulties for 8 Year-Old Students Who Are Not Quick with Their Facts
If your daughter has all her math facts memorized but just needs to be quicker with them, I’d just practice flashcards with her each day (rather than the skip counting and flashcards described in the blog post). Usually, kiddos struggle most with the 6’s, 7’s, 8’s, and 9’s. If this is slowing down the long division process for her, I’d just work on the 6’s one day, the 7’s the next, etc. for about 5-10 minutes and then finish out the rest of the math working through the long division together, getting as far as you get and picking up where you left off the next day.
Responding to 8 Year-Old Students Who Struggle with the Multiple Steps of Long Division
If your daughter has all her math facts memorized and knows them quickly but is just getting bogged down in the multiple steps of long division, I would not do the skip counting or flashcards. I would then just work through each long division problem step-by-step together, taking your time.
Sometimes kiddos struggle with having not enough space to work out long division (i.e. on lined notebook paper). Working long division problems out on markerboards helps kiddos have more space to write bigger. Dry erase markers are also easier to use than pencils, as they don’t break and are easier to erase.
Sometimes kiddos struggle with copying the problem accurately. Writing the problems for kiddos and showing them how to space the problems out can be a helpful training tool as well.
Still other times kiddos struggle with lining up their place value columns. Using graph paper can help with this. Be sure to use at least 1/2-inch graph paper, so writing size is not an issue.
Responding to Struggles with Math in General
When you come to a difficult skill in Singapore Math, a good rule of thumb is to set the timer for an appropriate amount of time for your child’s age (in this case 20-30 minutes). Work alongside your child, making sure to do every problem in both the textbook and the workbook before moving on. When the timer rings, stop and pick up where you left off the next day. You never want to skip a skill or skip problems, nor stop and only work on just one skill for long periods of time. Slowly steadily moving forward is the best way to approach Singapore Math, along with adding fact practice as necessary. Hope this helps!
In Christ,
Julie
