GeekBoy. Subtraction. The two do not mix. After this mornings round, I decided maybe there is a better way to reach him with this then what I’m trying. It suddenly dawned on me that he tested for being 61% right brained, and I tested as being a left brained. What’s the difference? Left side of the brain is more logical, uses facts, & very detail oriented. Right side is more feelings, big picture, symbols and images, imaginative types. Essentially, I think in words, he thinks in pictures – that kind of thing.
So I asked the Homeschool group, knowing there are several moms in there with right-brained kids, what do I do??? How do I get this kid to do his subtraction??? The answers I got – well… I didn’t get anything I didn’t already know.
- Don’t push him.
- Skip it! Right brainers will fill in the gaps as needed.
- Let him pick and chose where to go in the book.
- Real life/living math examples.
- Work with money.
All things that I knew!!! So why on earth aren’t I doing any of it?
So of course, my confidence is shaken. It was just a few days ago I mentioned to my husband that for some reason I felt better abt this year, more prepared, etc? Yea. I still feel better then I have in the past, I’m not wistfully thinking about that big yellow bus as an answer to my problem. But my confidence has taken a hit. I’m not going to throw in the towel, just need to fall back and regroup, you know?
So, I’ve made a deal with him – Pass the test for Chapter 1, and we will skip it all. Now, there is a page on order of operations (add first left-right, then subtract IE: 70-40-8+5) that we need to go over, so tomorrow we will do that, Friday the test. And looking at the test for chapter two (multiplying 0-5), if we skip to the order of operations (Multiply first! Then ad & subtract!) I think he can breeze through chapt 2 in a day or so. I’m printing up Book B, so if he wants to skip to Division we can.
Oh, and by the way, on my brain test, I tested as 70% left brained, and the teaching was listed among the occupations I’d probably enjoy most. Go figure!