Today I taught a grade 4 class how to subtract mentally- it was quite the challenge. Even with all the strategies listed in the text book I still had a difficult time understanding that it is even possible to teach someone how to do math in their head. I do not remember learning such mental math strategies in my math classes as a young student-maybe I blocked it out. However, I do use mental calculations on a daily basis in real life for so many situations, such as; calculating tips,making sure I received the correct change from a purchase, figuring out taxes, keeping score when I play golf, adding calories I eat throughout the day, and so on. It's actually a math strategy I use constantly, but I didn't realize that it was actually a strategy that was in the curriculum. I always thought i just had a natural talent for doing math in my head. Teaching students to use mental math with definitely be something that will be helpful for them in many everyday situations.
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