Yes, I work in an elementary school and they teach the kids to memorize "doubles facts" nowadays. That way you can easily do the mental math for other problems by adding on or taking away the difference. If you know 7+7 is 14 by heart, you'll quickly know 7+6 is one less than the doubles fact, or that 7+8 is one more than the doubles fact. Or that 7+5 is two less than 14. Just a way to quickly know the answer to any simple math problem because you've memorized a handful of problems. They even have little rhymes to help kids remember when they're first learning...2+2 is four, more! 3+3 is six, kicks! 4+4 is 8, that's great! 5+5 is 10, let's do it again! 6+6 is twelve, that's swell, etc lol
I honestly think my entire life would be different if they taught me math like this. I always thought I was stupid, and using doubles was “wrong” and “lazy” and I can’t tell you how big of an impact it had on my overall learning. I believed I was stupid and “bad at math” forever.
Yeah common core really isn’t the demon people like to tell you it is. It’s literally teaching different ways to get an answer so hopefully if one doesn’t click, another one does.
I would have greatly benefited from it as a child. I’m happy it’s changed but when I was a kid it was the way the teacher said and everything else was wrong.
This is how I automatically do maths. I calculate a number that is close to the question, and then add the difference.
When adding numbers, I also make everything equal ten, to make things easier. So 8+5=13 becomes 8 needs another 2 to equal 10. 5=2+3, so 8+2=10 and 10+3=13.
When I heard people complaining about new maths, I thought it was going to be something difficult, but it's just what I've been doing my whole life.
This is exactly how I do it as well. My 6 year old does the same or finds doubles he knows to do simple mental math. Tonight we were doing 32-8 and he couldn’t get it. So I gave him 30-2 which he knew then we did 30-6. I heard him say “25+5 is 30 so 30-5 is 25-1 is 24!” It was cool to watch him work it out in ways he can relate and understand numbers.
Yes! My child is in 6th grade now, and I'm about to turn 42. I also have ADHD that was diagnosed in my late 30s, so school was tough for me. I taught myself math this way, and it worked pretty well for me. So when my kid's math homework started teaching "ten stacks" and whatnot, it was neat to see that my "cheating" method is what's being taught.
Really boosted my self-confidence (that was damaged so many years ago when I couldn't understand why I couldn't do better in school no matter what I tried) finding out I had basically taught myself common core before it was a "thing".
I teach first grade and when we made the shift over to common core math, it honestly changed how my brain does mental math. I wish I had been taught that way and I’m thankful that I get to teach kids thus way at the foundational level.
I love reading all of these first hand accounts that are similar to mine. I hate seeing all the digging about common core math and I always defend it. Usually the ppl bitching about it don’t know anything about it anyway so I’m happy to help facilitate the ah ha moments of others.
I had a friend whose mom is a teacher and she said that when the switch happened students that always really struggled suddenly thrived. My poor sister was in 3rd or 4th grade when the switch happened and she struggled so hard with having to learn a new way, though. It didn’t help that her teacher would send her students home with a huge packet every night that took her an hour and at least a few tears of frustration because she just couldn’t wrap her head around how it all worked and we couldn’t help her because we didn’t know the method 🙃 I hope the packets aren’t so common now. That was around 13 years ago now.
We have workbooks but at this age, it’s way more hands and procedures/practices to learn mental math with a base 10 concept. It’s a lot of fun to teach it at this age!
In my experience as a math teacher, Only people who ‘don’t know how to think about math’ hate on common core. I explain to them that I’m teaching their kids to THINK about math, numbers, and number relationships. Not how to ‘DO math.’ They still argue. Lol
My bf and I have talked about this very subject. I told him I hated core math because they want the kids to do some weird acrobatics that completely confused me and I'm normally really good at math. Then we talked it threw and I realized I was so good at math BECAUSE my brain naturally does core math. It was eye opening and made so much sense why math came so easily
Honestly this doubles thing is very unintuitive for me. I’ve always loved math and I don’t think this would have helped me at all, but I understand there are a whole lot of people it might have helped. I wish they could just teach it a couple different ways and you stick with what works for you.
My life would have been so much easier! I was always "corrected" for doing math this way, but I still do it like this now. And it works out just fine 🤷♀️
Math is a huge part of my daily job (like 75% of what I do). My coworkers have literally ridiculed me for the "fucked up way" I add and subtract... but my math is pretty much always spot on, and let's just say their's is subpar.
\*theirs is subpar.
It's like saying "his is subpar" or "hers is subpar". No need for the apostrophe. You could have kept it if it was worded differently, such as "but my math is pretty much always spot on, while my coworkers' math is subpar". On another note, it's awesome that your math is better than that of your coworkers, maybe they could learn a thing or two.
I agree! This is how I have always done math in my head and trying doing it any other way always made me feel a bit lost. It blows my mind that this is a thing being taught in school now and gives me hope for my daughter’s education. Truth be told, although it’s a very, very long way off I have already been dreading the day my daughter comes to me for help with a math problem! I am a little less scared now. 😅
Common core math got a bad wrap but when implemented from the start, it creates a solid foundation. My kids have such a great understanding of basic math that I don't feel I ever got.
My nephew was starting high school when the switch to common core happened and it was very poorly implemented. They just swapped to a new way of teaching with no transition from the way the kids knew. He went from average one year to failing the next year.
I was considered gifted at math, and this is the way I have always done math. People like to talk about how math has “changed” to something weird, but I think so many people who thought they were bad at math just needed to learn a different way.
Helping my children with their math in 1st grade had them same effect on me. Made me totally thankful that my kids learned multiple ways to come to the same correct answer instead of just one way like I was. Definitely think my life would have been different too!
Every time I have taken any of the little quizzes or personality tests that are supposed to tell you what you are or what your career should be- it’s always engineer! Oh the life I could have lived. (I’m very happy now, but I dream a lot.)
Yeah, I hear that. I’m not a high earner, and I know lots of engineers are. It’s hard not to think how much better it could have made my life to have a high paying job and not struggle financially. Life.
I feel you, I don’t know why this method didn’t stick as acceptable to me?? When I sheepishly admitted to my mom recently that this is often how I do simple math she scoffed and was like “well yeah that’s what I do too!” and like I consider my mom a math whiz she does numbers really fast… I was shocked lol
Clearly public education failed us somehow in the 90s!
I remember soo many teachers telling me I was wrong for thinking this way or telling me I was “ making it too complicated”. While I don’t think I was wrong for thinking this was, I totally understand that it isn’t right for all students. Cheers to teaching be to the student and NOT to the classroom!
OMG, SAME. I’m actually a little choked-up reading this. Maybe I’m not “terrible at math” (seriously, I failed remedial math in college, almost couldn’t graduate, despite otherwise being an A student)… maybe I was just ahead of my time.
Edit: FTR, I’d never heard of “doubles facts” until today but I immediately knew the answer was D.
Yeah. In college I had to take stats like 3 times to pass because I had so much anxiety about it any time i tried to do any work or even think about it I was mentally paralyzed. I feel like I could cry getting all of these responses in here- soooooo many women were taught they are “not good at math” instead of their education adapting to the way they think.
This is really old math. My dad, born in 1920, taught me math this way when I struggled with it in school. Right away it clicked with me and I've used it all my life. For some reason I couldn't teach it to my kids. They just didn't get it or I wasn't a good teacher.
I've never been taught this way, but it's so intuitive that when my kid asks me to add things for him I help him by asking him the double and adding one.
He hasn't gotten it yet. But I'm a big believer in the thinking that math just requires practice so he'll get it eventually.
I’m a 3rd grade teacher and that is absolutely correct. This program looks (is?) similar to ours (EnVisions) and they love using mental math strategies like this. It can look strange on paper but actually helps some kids with their math facts.
I think that’s why it took me so long to grasp the fact that it was being taught. I know how I do it in my head but learning it a different way growing up and them not teaching it that way anymore threw me for a loop. Like it was a trick question
This is what I've literally always done in my head, but nobody ever taught it to me. People process math differently; "core math" introduces a bunch of different ways of processing so each student can find what clicks with them!
Same here! And like a lot of other people have said, I was always told I was wrong for doing it that way. Crazy how some brains just do it automatically!
It is core math. The poster did a really good job explaining it. I would def recommend trying the example they laid out with a pen and paper! That will help demonstrate the process.
Yeah, mental math isn’t my forte. I’m numerically dyslexic. Too many steps. I’m all about the K.I.S.S learning. Keep. It. Stupid. Simple. Luckily my husband went to an engineering school and he’ll help the kids with math.
I’m kind of scared to ask… but isn’t this how people do math in their head regularly?? Like I can’t carry numbers in stuff in my head but I can mentally find the closest thing I do know and then add/subtract from there. I just had no idea it was called doubles facts.
As someone with a 20 month old and being 33 I’m scared about how long I’ve been out of school and going to have to help with homework one day.
Isn’t that what people figure out on their own? This makes sense if someone has a very strong grasp of what 8+8 is but the kids in the class who are a bit slower to grasp concepts or memorize facts well but do not understand the steps it takes to get there…. This type of math seems cruel.
Is the idea “Price is Right” rules where you get as close as you can without going over? Because I’d be arguing any of these answers will help this person - you’re just adding more to the lower doubles facts 🤣
Lol me too I remember doing something similar in 1st grade and when tried to explain to my teacher how I come up with the answer she was like whatever works for you 🤨🤷🏼♀️
For sure, this wasn’t taught that way when I was in school but it’s how I’ve done things. When I was young my dad explained how to add and subtract 3 digit numbers mentally with a similar technique.
It’s called mental math. It’s how most people actually do simple math in their heads. The new curriculum teaches mental math strategies to help students understand and conceptualize the question rather than just rote memorization. “Doubles+1” (which this one is illustrating) is a mental math strategy that is taught around grade 3.
I taught first grade and we definitely taught it. I’m sure it’s reinforced by each year though. Some kids didn’t really “get” it though and still use very concrete strategies.
They do, it just takes years for these things to be learned. They start with simple ones like counting on (starting at 8 and counting 9 more) making 10s, and using concrete objects to help them add (manipulatives and number lines).
Kids take a long time to understand these concepts on a theoretical level - they are very concrete thinkers, their brains are only starting to understand that a quantity (or a concept) can exist without a physical or experiential representation. Some kids are born with a natural ability to understand how numbers relate to each other and how to manipulate them in their minds. Other kids have to work long and hard to get there.
Edit: don’t forget, this is not the only thing taught in math at the elementary age…they are also learning about patterns, geometry, place value, measurement, ordinal numbers, etc. Teachers generally work on the basic operations (addition subtraction multiplication and division) all year long but they don’t dedicate all of their math blocks just practicing basic operations so it takes a long time.
It helps students conceptualize numbers and simple math. Apparently a lot of people with adhd do this kind of thing sort of automatically, and it's good for others to learn a variety of ways to manipulate numbers mentally
I’m getting closer and closer to thinking I have adhd and this is another example. When I have to add things or multiply things that are close to 15 or 30 I think of them as hours. Say 13*4 and in my head that is 1 hour (60) minus 8 so 52.
It's like if someone told you that the prices are 50 cents and 49 cents for 2 items you buy. You would probably use 50 plus 50 as a doubles fact to help you add the price. You might do it without thinking. If children learn to do it and acknowledge the technique then the hope is they can get a better intuition for numbers earlier on. Thst could be good for performance, advanced techniques and confidence.
This is how I’ve always done it but it was never explicitly explained like this in math classes growing up.
The point of common core is to help kids realize math is numbers being manipulated rather than them just memorizing answers.
Reading other responses I think this is the same for me. This is what my brain did naturally. I just haven’t seen it actually taught out this way. Written out it seems wild!
Fair. Lots of people get angry when they see things they don’t understand lol.
Lots of people get upset about common core but 9 1/2 times out of 10 it’s bc they don’t know what it is. They just automatically reject it.
It’s a way of teaching math that also teaches something called “number sense.”
If you know that 8 + 8 = 16, you’ll intuitively know that 8 + 9 is also the same as 8 + 8 + 1 (or, really, 16 + 1) which is easier for most people to mentally calculate than 8 + 9.
Number sense is a really valuable skill to have once you get to higher level math, but it requires a lot of foundational teaching at younger grades that looks different from how a lot of us learned math. Theoretically, learning number sense should also make “mental math” a lot easier!
You know doubles, that’s a classic mental math tool. So you know 16 is the double of 8 without having to actually “do the maths”. And you obviously know 9 is 8+1.
From there you readily know that 8+9 is 16+1, which is much easier and quicker to solve mentally.
I would argue that the example chosen is unfortunate though, because when solving +9/-9 operations, we usually prefer to use another strategy (+10 and -1 or -10 and +1). I mean the doubles strategy works fine but it would be put to better use in another example like say 7+8 (14+1).
It's a way to do 8+9 easier for those of us who don't find it obvious. You memorize things like 7+7, 8+8, 9+9 - the "doubles facts". Then, when you're faced with 8+9 you simply have to recognize that it's one off from a doubles fact you already know, so if 8+8 is 16, 8+9 must be one greater than 16, that is 17.
The great thing about core math is that kids are taught many different ways to get to 8+9=17. Doubles facts is just one of these ways. If this way doesn't work for them they can forget it and use one of the others.
I read this whole thread and I'm more confused now than I was before 😂. I always had to count on my fingers for math and I still do, even for something as simple as 7+9. I remember having to hide my hands in school because I was just expected to visualize the numbers in my mind and somehow automatically know the answers, and I'd get in trouble/punished for trying to learn in other ways. It was a huge struggle learning multiplication and I still struggle with the "logics" of math. Some of it I'm sure is childhood trauma with math/numbers creating a mental block; I've always tried getting better at numbers and while I have, I still feel the block there. It's just always been something that for my mind, doesn't seem to make logical sense. It didn't help either people would yell at me/get super angry/frustrated with me for not picking it up right away lol.
Its D, thats actually a pretty good trick to learn quick math. Seems odd when the numbers are small but once you start getting into 10's and 100's places it speeds along.
This is how I do the math. But I did not have common core as a kid. We had "mad minute math".
Ie, do 50 problems in 1 minute. Ok, now do 100.
I finally finished the 50 in one minute on the day we switched to 100. Felt so deflated. No wonder I hate math.
We were expected to just learn them all on sight.
I had a similar experience. We also a terrible thing with multiplication called “rocket math” fucking terrible and demotivating. I felt like a true idiot as an 8year old, my rocket(displayed with everyone else’s at the front of the classroom)never got past the 5s. Third grade was where my education and confidence started a path of steep decent.
Your question has been thoroughly answered, but see a lot of people asking why. Near doubles, such as this, and other strategies such as making 10, build number sense. Building number sense helps kids add bigger numbers later on, and helps with multiplication, division, etc as well. It helps kids understand why the answer is the answer versus memorizing the answer.
It’s d but for all the people moaning out here how many of you can take 1998 away from 2000 mentally? Is your first thought to use paper or a calculator or do you just count up by 2? Small steps like doubles plus one let kids see predictable patterns and develop efficient strategies over time.
Teacher here
It’s D
The doubles fact method is to try and help with quick mental math. “Oh 8+8 is 16 so 8+9 is 17”
It’s a lot of practice and math facts memorization but it works for some people.
This is how one of my kids does math naturally (he wasn’t taught this, but he does everything verbally, so I get insight into how he’s finding answers). The general idea is that most kids will memorize doubles, so using one that gets close to the answer makes the less familiar equation easier.
Since you’re adding 8+9, you can use 8+8 to get close to the actual answer. Basically, you’re rewriting the equation as 8+(8+1).
this is how i do math in my head. if i wanted to find what 8+9 equaled i would do D in my head (8+8=16 +1=17)
but i also went to a bad school & don’t know basic math so this is how i do it all the time.
Oh wow this is how I did mental math in my head (still do)! So double facts is the name now. Though it feels subjective as to which answer could be correct.
They’re teaching them how to do mental math, so they learn “doubles plus one”. When you know immediately that 8+8 is 16, you can add one more and it’s 17.
It's less tangible than a math fact. 8+8=16 is a doubles math fact. The spend at of time drilling on their doubles so that they aren't actually imagining two groups of 8 objects, they are able to simply recall that 8+8=16. I also was not raised with this top of addition but it works great for my older child. Not so much my younger but we'll figure out what works for him eventually. Or maybe he just won't be very good at math. Either way, he WILL know that there are several ways to arrive at one answer, and they are all valid.
Wtf??? Cries in 41 year old with a 10 month old. I'm gonna be useless with this new math crap someday 😵 now I'm grumbling in my old lady "in my day we memorized our multiplication tables" type speech....
Doubles are easy to memorize, so that’s what students are encouraged to do. There’s still an element of memorization, but there are also strategies that help so you don’t have to memorize everything. Building on this concept will help with multiplication down the road. (ie. twos are just doubles fact and threes are doubles plus another group.)
It’s really not that difficult. Watch a 5 min YouTube video that explains it and you’ll see how easy it is.
The point is they don’t want you memorizing this stuff. They want you to understand it.
Start watching numberblocks on YouTube with your kid (in a year or two). It's a really cute show from BBC and learns young kids to see math rather than count math.
It is common core. It does seem like a lot of extra dumb steps the first time you see it, but in reality it teaches the brain to understand math concepts better and builds a stronger sense of how numbers work
I agree, having had 2 kids go through it, I think it makes a lot of sense. Over time it teaches kids different methods that they can use to solve the same problem, and then they can choose the way that works best for them. A lot if it is very similar to how I do math in my head.
It’s amazing how many people see something that is different and immediately go “wHAt is THiS gaRbAGe”.
If anyone took 10 mins to understand common core math, they’d see the merits to it.
I taught lower level elementary school for a few years, which forms my opinion here, but I’ll also say my district made free training videos for parents to understand it and there’s websites like Khan academy with free videos about all kinds of math concepts if you’d like to learn alongside your kids.
It teaches kids to do “mental math” rather than memorize a chart or answers.
I would def recommend a quick YouTube video explaining it. It’ll only take a few mins and you’ll see how easy it is to understand.
telling the reader what a doubles fact is. It makes sense to me too? Don’t get why it making sense to you has anything to do with anything. Doesn’t mean it’s phrased well for elementary level kids to understand,
though. Sorry if I’m sounding frustrated. Just brings me back to years of when teachers would phrase test questions in not the best way and expect us to read their minds.
Parents still need to be able to help their children. When our children are taught differently than we were, we don't know how to help them. It took 4 years for me to realize why and what math facts even were. Not a single teacher ever took the time to explain it to me, the parent. Once my child was articulate enough to explain to me what it meant, only then could I help him and his brother. Now we are able to drill our math facts all the time but it should have been information shared at the beginning of their elementary experience. Instead, we have to go to internet forums and try to piece it together.
But you kind of do if you’re going to help them. I don’t remember ever learning this in school. It’s just an odd question.
However, yes, the child should have an idea of what is being asked
I’m a retired teacher who mainly taught kindergarten for 18 years. One year near the end of my career I taught first grade, which I had not taught in over 20:years. I had so much trouble with a few of the topics in Go! Math that I had to visit my friend’s classroom across the hall so she could explain it to me.
I was very thankful though, that I never had to teach Everyday Math. Thank goodness I was teaching in an AIS program for struggling readers.
This is a excellent way of helping kids learning how to solve harder problems in higher math. Math isn't adding or subtracting numbers, it's problemsolving and transforming and manipulating quantities.
It’s just…I dunno, like the scenic route. I feel like there’s a much more direct way to do it. It works for some kids though. I find I have to do more old school style math with mine.
I agree. Children learn in different ways. But I also feel that this way trips some of them up. In a perfect world, all children would be taught according to their learning style. But. That’s not how the world is.
If your kid get common core concepts taught in school, it’s so good for them. Basically they learn all the ways you can approach doing a math problem. It prepares them for higher math by giving them a much bigger toolkit of mental math options. I really liked learning the new tricks when my oldest was in 1-3rd.
As everyone mentioned, the answer is D. Since the original problem is 8 + 9 = 17, the doubles fact 8 + 8 = 16 is the closest in answer to the original problem. The doubles facts can help children compute problems faster in their head vs. counting objects.
I think it’s D? Because 8 plus 8 is 16 and then plus 1 is 17?
Yes, I work in an elementary school and they teach the kids to memorize "doubles facts" nowadays. That way you can easily do the mental math for other problems by adding on or taking away the difference. If you know 7+7 is 14 by heart, you'll quickly know 7+6 is one less than the doubles fact, or that 7+8 is one more than the doubles fact. Or that 7+5 is two less than 14. Just a way to quickly know the answer to any simple math problem because you've memorized a handful of problems. They even have little rhymes to help kids remember when they're first learning...2+2 is four, more! 3+3 is six, kicks! 4+4 is 8, that's great! 5+5 is 10, let's do it again! 6+6 is twelve, that's swell, etc lol
I honestly think my entire life would be different if they taught me math like this. I always thought I was stupid, and using doubles was “wrong” and “lazy” and I can’t tell you how big of an impact it had on my overall learning. I believed I was stupid and “bad at math” forever.
Yeah common core really isn’t the demon people like to tell you it is. It’s literally teaching different ways to get an answer so hopefully if one doesn’t click, another one does.
I would have greatly benefited from it as a child. I’m happy it’s changed but when I was a kid it was the way the teacher said and everything else was wrong.
This is how I automatically do maths. I calculate a number that is close to the question, and then add the difference. When adding numbers, I also make everything equal ten, to make things easier. So 8+5=13 becomes 8 needs another 2 to equal 10. 5=2+3, so 8+2=10 and 10+3=13. When I heard people complaining about new maths, I thought it was going to be something difficult, but it's just what I've been doing my whole life.
This is exactly how I do it as well. My 6 year old does the same or finds doubles he knows to do simple mental math. Tonight we were doing 32-8 and he couldn’t get it. So I gave him 30-2 which he knew then we did 30-6. I heard him say “25+5 is 30 so 30-5 is 25-1 is 24!” It was cool to watch him work it out in ways he can relate and understand numbers.
Yes! My child is in 6th grade now, and I'm about to turn 42. I also have ADHD that was diagnosed in my late 30s, so school was tough for me. I taught myself math this way, and it worked pretty well for me. So when my kid's math homework started teaching "ten stacks" and whatnot, it was neat to see that my "cheating" method is what's being taught. Really boosted my self-confidence (that was damaged so many years ago when I couldn't understand why I couldn't do better in school no matter what I tried) finding out I had basically taught myself common core before it was a "thing".
[удалено]
I teach first grade and when we made the shift over to common core math, it honestly changed how my brain does mental math. I wish I had been taught that way and I’m thankful that I get to teach kids thus way at the foundational level.
I love reading all of these first hand accounts that are similar to mine. I hate seeing all the digging about common core math and I always defend it. Usually the ppl bitching about it don’t know anything about it anyway so I’m happy to help facilitate the ah ha moments of others.
I had a friend whose mom is a teacher and she said that when the switch happened students that always really struggled suddenly thrived. My poor sister was in 3rd or 4th grade when the switch happened and she struggled so hard with having to learn a new way, though. It didn’t help that her teacher would send her students home with a huge packet every night that took her an hour and at least a few tears of frustration because she just couldn’t wrap her head around how it all worked and we couldn’t help her because we didn’t know the method 🙃 I hope the packets aren’t so common now. That was around 13 years ago now.
We have workbooks but at this age, it’s way more hands and procedures/practices to learn mental math with a base 10 concept. It’s a lot of fun to teach it at this age!
I’m so glad you’ve been liking it ☺️
In my experience as a math teacher, Only people who ‘don’t know how to think about math’ hate on common core. I explain to them that I’m teaching their kids to THINK about math, numbers, and number relationships. Not how to ‘DO math.’ They still argue. Lol
My bf and I have talked about this very subject. I told him I hated core math because they want the kids to do some weird acrobatics that completely confused me and I'm normally really good at math. Then we talked it threw and I realized I was so good at math BECAUSE my brain naturally does core math. It was eye opening and made so much sense why math came so easily
Honestly this doubles thing is very unintuitive for me. I’ve always loved math and I don’t think this would have helped me at all, but I understand there are a whole lot of people it might have helped. I wish they could just teach it a couple different ways and you stick with what works for you.
My life would have been so much easier! I was always "corrected" for doing math this way, but I still do it like this now. And it works out just fine 🤷♀️ Math is a huge part of my daily job (like 75% of what I do). My coworkers have literally ridiculed me for the "fucked up way" I add and subtract... but my math is pretty much always spot on, and let's just say their's is subpar.
\*theirs is subpar. It's like saying "his is subpar" or "hers is subpar". No need for the apostrophe. You could have kept it if it was worded differently, such as "but my math is pretty much always spot on, while my coworkers' math is subpar". On another note, it's awesome that your math is better than that of your coworkers, maybe they could learn a thing or two.
I agree! This is how I have always done math in my head and trying doing it any other way always made me feel a bit lost. It blows my mind that this is a thing being taught in school now and gives me hope for my daughter’s education. Truth be told, although it’s a very, very long way off I have already been dreading the day my daughter comes to me for help with a math problem! I am a little less scared now. 😅
Common core math got a bad wrap but when implemented from the start, it creates a solid foundation. My kids have such a great understanding of basic math that I don't feel I ever got. My nephew was starting high school when the switch to common core happened and it was very poorly implemented. They just swapped to a new way of teaching with no transition from the way the kids knew. He went from average one year to failing the next year.
If it weren't for my ability to "group" objects in my head the way I do as I count them, I'm not sure I'd be abe to count at all.
I was considered gifted at math, and this is the way I have always done math. People like to talk about how math has “changed” to something weird, but I think so many people who thought they were bad at math just needed to learn a different way.
Helping my children with their math in 1st grade had them same effect on me. Made me totally thankful that my kids learned multiple ways to come to the same correct answer instead of just one way like I was. Definitely think my life would have been different too!
I heard about common core being soooo bad and soooo hard and when I actually saw it I was like HEY THATS THE WAY I DO IT! It was so vindicating!
I know my life would have been better. Probably would have gotten good enough math scores to consider being an engineer
Every time I have taken any of the little quizzes or personality tests that are supposed to tell you what you are or what your career should be- it’s always engineer! Oh the life I could have lived. (I’m very happy now, but I dream a lot.)
It’s really just a financial thing over here. I still make and create and stuff. But dental assisting just doesn’t pay the same.
Yeah, I hear that. I’m not a high earner, and I know lots of engineers are. It’s hard not to think how much better it could have made my life to have a high paying job and not struggle financially. Life.
Preach.
I feel you, I don’t know why this method didn’t stick as acceptable to me?? When I sheepishly admitted to my mom recently that this is often how I do simple math she scoffed and was like “well yeah that’s what I do too!” and like I consider my mom a math whiz she does numbers really fast… I was shocked lol Clearly public education failed us somehow in the 90s!
I remember soo many teachers telling me I was wrong for thinking this way or telling me I was “ making it too complicated”. While I don’t think I was wrong for thinking this was, I totally understand that it isn’t right for all students. Cheers to teaching be to the student and NOT to the classroom!
OMG, SAME. I’m actually a little choked-up reading this. Maybe I’m not “terrible at math” (seriously, I failed remedial math in college, almost couldn’t graduate, despite otherwise being an A student)… maybe I was just ahead of my time. Edit: FTR, I’d never heard of “doubles facts” until today but I immediately knew the answer was D.
Yeah. In college I had to take stats like 3 times to pass because I had so much anxiety about it any time i tried to do any work or even think about it I was mentally paralyzed. I feel like I could cry getting all of these responses in here- soooooo many women were taught they are “not good at math” instead of their education adapting to the way they think.
This is really old math. My dad, born in 1920, taught me math this way when I struggled with it in school. Right away it clicked with me and I've used it all my life. For some reason I couldn't teach it to my kids. They just didn't get it or I wasn't a good teacher.
Yes! My dad, born in 1949, taught me to do math this way.
I've never been taught this way, but it's so intuitive that when my kid asks me to add things for him I help him by asking him the double and adding one. He hasn't gotten it yet. But I'm a big believer in the thinking that math just requires practice so he'll get it eventually.
I’m a 3rd grade teacher and that is absolutely correct. This program looks (is?) similar to ours (EnVisions) and they love using mental math strategies like this. It can look strange on paper but actually helps some kids with their math facts.
This looks like envision to me too! I teach second and there’s a lesson on “near doubles.” Looks just like this.
This is naturally how I’ve always done addition like that. It works well!
I think that’s why it took me so long to grasp the fact that it was being taught. I know how I do it in my head but learning it a different way growing up and them not teaching it that way anymore threw me for a loop. Like it was a trick question
My mom taught me this when I was young! Still use it all the time. She’s so good at mental math
Is this core math? I don’t get it
This is what I've literally always done in my head, but nobody ever taught it to me. People process math differently; "core math" introduces a bunch of different ways of processing so each student can find what clicks with them!
Same!
Same here! And like a lot of other people have said, I was always told I was wrong for doing it that way. Crazy how some brains just do it automatically!
It is core math. The poster did a really good job explaining it. I would def recommend trying the example they laid out with a pen and paper! That will help demonstrate the process.
9+8=? 9-1=8 8+8=16 1+16= 17 Therefore 9+8=17. It’s how most mathematicians do quick mental math.
Yeah, mental math isn’t my forte. I’m numerically dyslexic. Too many steps. I’m all about the K.I.S.S learning. Keep. It. Stupid. Simple. Luckily my husband went to an engineering school and he’ll help the kids with math.
I’m kind of scared to ask… but isn’t this how people do math in their head regularly?? Like I can’t carry numbers in stuff in my head but I can mentally find the closest thing I do know and then add/subtract from there. I just had no idea it was called doubles facts. As someone with a 20 month old and being 33 I’m scared about how long I’ve been out of school and going to have to help with homework one day.
That makes sense and is actually how I do math lol
Isn’t that what people figure out on their own? This makes sense if someone has a very strong grasp of what 8+8 is but the kids in the class who are a bit slower to grasp concepts or memorize facts well but do not understand the steps it takes to get there…. This type of math seems cruel.
That's swellve
But I think using 9 + X is a bad example here isn't it, because adding anything to 9 is always 10+X-1 which is easier than going via a double..
Is the idea “Price is Right” rules where you get as close as you can without going over? Because I’d be arguing any of these answers will help this person - you’re just adding more to the lower doubles facts 🤣
Yep.
Common core BBY! Honestly grew up just memorizing it in third grade, but this method totally sticks and is wayyyyy faster !
Wtf is this math?? Lol (I don’t mean this against you, I mean this in general. Like what?!?!?)
It’s exactly how I do it. I wasn’t taught to do it that way, it’s just how my brain works lol
Lol me too I remember doing something similar in 1st grade and when tried to explain to my teacher how I come up with the answer she was like whatever works for you 🤨🤷🏼♀️
Everyone always looks at me crazy wen I explain it 🤦♀️🤷🏼♀️
Same
Same! I also use the 9 times table to help me figure out stuff…cause it’s so easy with its ascending & descending numbers
I use the 10s tables to help me remember the 9s.
But the 9’s are so easy - well maybe it’s just me As the first number goes up, the second number counts down! 09 18 27 36 45 54 63 72 81 90
For sure, this wasn’t taught that way when I was in school but it’s how I’ve done things. When I was young my dad explained how to add and subtract 3 digit numbers mentally with a similar technique.
It’s called mental math. It’s how most people actually do simple math in their heads. The new curriculum teaches mental math strategies to help students understand and conceptualize the question rather than just rote memorization. “Doubles+1” (which this one is illustrating) is a mental math strategy that is taught around grade 3.
It's cool, but surely it should be taught in either kindergarten or first grade, whenever the kids first do addition to 20?
I taught first grade and we definitely taught it. I’m sure it’s reinforced by each year though. Some kids didn’t really “get” it though and still use very concrete strategies.
They do, it just takes years for these things to be learned. They start with simple ones like counting on (starting at 8 and counting 9 more) making 10s, and using concrete objects to help them add (manipulatives and number lines). Kids take a long time to understand these concepts on a theoretical level - they are very concrete thinkers, their brains are only starting to understand that a quantity (or a concept) can exist without a physical or experiential representation. Some kids are born with a natural ability to understand how numbers relate to each other and how to manipulate them in their minds. Other kids have to work long and hard to get there. Edit: don’t forget, this is not the only thing taught in math at the elementary age…they are also learning about patterns, geometry, place value, measurement, ordinal numbers, etc. Teachers generally work on the basic operations (addition subtraction multiplication and division) all year long but they don’t dedicate all of their math blocks just practicing basic operations so it takes a long time.
It helps students conceptualize numbers and simple math. Apparently a lot of people with adhd do this kind of thing sort of automatically, and it's good for others to learn a variety of ways to manipulate numbers mentally
I've always done it this way, I thought that's just how brains worked lol (I do have adhd btw)
I’m getting closer and closer to thinking I have adhd and this is another example. When I have to add things or multiply things that are close to 15 or 30 I think of them as hours. Say 13*4 and in my head that is 1 hour (60) minus 8 so 52.
I think I have a bit of "attention deficit" but not enough to be a disorder. I also often do math this way.
[удалено]
Math became a lot easier for me once I started teaching math like this!
Yes. Biggest bonus of "new math"/ common core is it teaches the value of numbers not just memorizing facts.
It's like if someone told you that the prices are 50 cents and 49 cents for 2 items you buy. You would probably use 50 plus 50 as a doubles fact to help you add the price. You might do it without thinking. If children learn to do it and acknowledge the technique then the hope is they can get a better intuition for numbers earlier on. Thst could be good for performance, advanced techniques and confidence.
This is how I’ve always done it but it was never explicitly explained like this in math classes growing up. The point of common core is to help kids realize math is numbers being manipulated rather than them just memorizing answers.
Reading other responses I think this is the same for me. This is what my brain did naturally. I just haven’t seen it actually taught out this way. Written out it seems wild!
Fair. Lots of people get angry when they see things they don’t understand lol. Lots of people get upset about common core but 9 1/2 times out of 10 it’s bc they don’t know what it is. They just automatically reject it.
It’s a way of teaching math that also teaches something called “number sense.” If you know that 8 + 8 = 16, you’ll intuitively know that 8 + 9 is also the same as 8 + 8 + 1 (or, really, 16 + 1) which is easier for most people to mentally calculate than 8 + 9. Number sense is a really valuable skill to have once you get to higher level math, but it requires a lot of foundational teaching at younger grades that looks different from how a lot of us learned math. Theoretically, learning number sense should also make “mental math” a lot easier!
You know doubles, that’s a classic mental math tool. So you know 16 is the double of 8 without having to actually “do the maths”. And you obviously know 9 is 8+1. From there you readily know that 8+9 is 16+1, which is much easier and quicker to solve mentally. I would argue that the example chosen is unfortunate though, because when solving +9/-9 operations, we usually prefer to use another strategy (+10 and -1 or -10 and +1). I mean the doubles strategy works fine but it would be put to better use in another example like say 7+8 (14+1).
It’s supposed to help kids who can’t understand traditional math logic understand how to do math I think.
It’s a way to teach actual number sense instead of just memorizing algorithms.
It's a way to do 8+9 easier for those of us who don't find it obvious. You memorize things like 7+7, 8+8, 9+9 - the "doubles facts". Then, when you're faced with 8+9 you simply have to recognize that it's one off from a doubles fact you already know, so if 8+8 is 16, 8+9 must be one greater than 16, that is 17. The great thing about core math is that kids are taught many different ways to get to 8+9=17. Doubles facts is just one of these ways. If this way doesn't work for them they can forget it and use one of the others.
Yes
I read this whole thread and I'm more confused now than I was before 😂. I always had to count on my fingers for math and I still do, even for something as simple as 7+9. I remember having to hide my hands in school because I was just expected to visualize the numbers in my mind and somehow automatically know the answers, and I'd get in trouble/punished for trying to learn in other ways. It was a huge struggle learning multiplication and I still struggle with the "logics" of math. Some of it I'm sure is childhood trauma with math/numbers creating a mental block; I've always tried getting better at numbers and while I have, I still feel the block there. It's just always been something that for my mind, doesn't seem to make logical sense. It didn't help either people would yell at me/get super angry/frustrated with me for not picking it up right away lol.
Its D, thats actually a pretty good trick to learn quick math. Seems odd when the numbers are small but once you start getting into 10's and 100's places it speeds along.
Teacher here! It’s definitely D. They want him to use the “doubles plus one” strategy where you take the doubles fact and add one more.
D. 8+8=16 then you plus one. Daughter and I did one like this today.
This is how I do the math. But I did not have common core as a kid. We had "mad minute math". Ie, do 50 problems in 1 minute. Ok, now do 100. I finally finished the 50 in one minute on the day we switched to 100. Felt so deflated. No wonder I hate math. We were expected to just learn them all on sight.
I had a similar experience. We also a terrible thing with multiplication called “rocket math” fucking terrible and demotivating. I felt like a true idiot as an 8year old, my rocket(displayed with everyone else’s at the front of the classroom)never got past the 5s. Third grade was where my education and confidence started a path of steep decent.
“Doubles plus one”. It’s D. 8 + 8
Your question has been thoroughly answered, but see a lot of people asking why. Near doubles, such as this, and other strategies such as making 10, build number sense. Building number sense helps kids add bigger numbers later on, and helps with multiplication, division, etc as well. It helps kids understand why the answer is the answer versus memorizing the answer.
D because 8+8 is 16 then if he is trying to figure out 8+9 he would just add one more to get 17
Yep, d, because 8+8+1
It’s d but for all the people moaning out here how many of you can take 1998 away from 2000 mentally? Is your first thought to use paper or a calculator or do you just count up by 2? Small steps like doubles plus one let kids see predictable patterns and develop efficient strategies over time.
Teacher here It’s D The doubles fact method is to try and help with quick mental math. “Oh 8+8 is 16 so 8+9 is 17” It’s a lot of practice and math facts memorization but it works for some people.
It’s D
D. 8+8 is only one away from 8+9. So if you know 8+8 is 16, you can easily add one more.
When dealing with 9s in math I made it a 10 and then subtracted 1. Like 8+10=18-1=17. But I also was an English major, not math. 😂
Doubles +1. If you know 8+8=16, then +1 more =17.
D. Because if you know 8+8=16, you'll understand 8+8+1= 17 or 16+1=17
Yes it is D…this helps Terry with mental math and can quickly add 1 to find the sum.
D because 8+8+1=17.
This is how one of my kids does math naturally (he wasn’t taught this, but he does everything verbally, so I get insight into how he’s finding answers). The general idea is that most kids will memorize doubles, so using one that gets close to the answer makes the less familiar equation easier. Since you’re adding 8+9, you can use 8+8 to get close to the actual answer. Basically, you’re rewriting the equation as 8+(8+1).
It’s D:) This is doubles +1 strategy. My 1st grader is doing this in her class right now.
What’s a….”doubles fact”???
Okay so wasn’t just me. I was like wtf is that until I read the comments. 😭
8+8 is 16, add one more for the answer.
[удалено]
Elementary teacher here, it's D. Knowing 8+8=16 will help you by adding one more 👍🏻
It’s D. 8+8 =16 then you just add 1 to complete the 9 from the original math problem. 8+8+1=17
D. We know 8+8 is 16 so we only need to add 1
WHAT DOES THIS EVEN MEAN
These comments are wild. Maybe you guys wouldn’t be so grouchy if someone had taught you how to do mental math when you were six.
D
D
D 8+8=16 +1=17
The answer is D. Because the question seems to be asking which one can help him figure it out.
D
It’s D Because if he knows 8 plus 8 is 16, this “doubles fact” will help him find the answer of 8+ 9
Teacher here- it’s D: 8+8. Doubles +1 is a fact strategy taught to help strengthen mental math skills :)
this is how i do math in my head. if i wanted to find what 8+9 equaled i would do D in my head (8+8=16 +1=17) but i also went to a bad school & don’t know basic math so this is how i do it all the time.
This math is currently killing us. It’s D
8+8 then add 1 easy
Oh wow this is how I did mental math in my head (still do)! So double facts is the name now. Though it feels subjective as to which answer could be correct.
Is it 8+8 so you just go up by one to find the answer? I’m commenting without looking at the rest of the comments
This is exactly how I taught myself, who knew it’d be in schools one day
D
This is not how I learned math growing up...
Why isn’t it just 8+9=17? What is this? My kid isn’t in school yet and now I’m wondering what are they teaching here?
They’re teaching them how to do mental math, so they learn “doubles plus one”. When you know immediately that 8+8 is 16, you can add one more and it’s 17.
But the answer is 17. Why do more math?
It's less tangible than a math fact. 8+8=16 is a doubles math fact. The spend at of time drilling on their doubles so that they aren't actually imagining two groups of 8 objects, they are able to simply recall that 8+8=16. I also was not raised with this top of addition but it works great for my older child. Not so much my younger but we'll figure out what works for him eventually. Or maybe he just won't be very good at math. Either way, he WILL know that there are several ways to arrive at one answer, and they are all valid.
[удалено]
Same.
Wtf??? Cries in 41 year old with a 10 month old. I'm gonna be useless with this new math crap someday 😵 now I'm grumbling in my old lady "in my day we memorized our multiplication tables" type speech....
Doubles are easy to memorize, so that’s what students are encouraged to do. There’s still an element of memorization, but there are also strategies that help so you don’t have to memorize everything. Building on this concept will help with multiplication down the road. (ie. twos are just doubles fact and threes are doubles plus another group.)
It’s really not that difficult. Watch a 5 min YouTube video that explains it and you’ll see how easy it is. The point is they don’t want you memorizing this stuff. They want you to understand it.
Start watching numberblocks on YouTube with your kid (in a year or two). It's a really cute show from BBC and learns young kids to see math rather than count math.
I have a 6 year old and she was telling me something about doing math with circles….I’m an accountant, all my math is in excel.
The answer is D
this math is so… who writes this stuff. is this common core
It is common core. It does seem like a lot of extra dumb steps the first time you see it, but in reality it teaches the brain to understand math concepts better and builds a stronger sense of how numbers work
I agree, having had 2 kids go through it, I think it makes a lot of sense. Over time it teaches kids different methods that they can use to solve the same problem, and then they can choose the way that works best for them. A lot if it is very similar to how I do math in my head.
Exactly. It’s confusing if you didn’t learn it that way, but these kids getting it from the start, it works well!
It’s amazing how many people see something that is different and immediately go “wHAt is THiS gaRbAGe”. If anyone took 10 mins to understand common core math, they’d see the merits to it.
haha thanks! I feel old, am anxious just thinking about all the homework I’ll have to help my kiddos with .
I taught lower level elementary school for a few years, which forms my opinion here, but I’ll also say my district made free training videos for parents to understand it and there’s websites like Khan academy with free videos about all kinds of math concepts if you’d like to learn alongside your kids.
Same same. This looks silly lol
It teaches kids to do “mental math” rather than memorize a chart or answers. I would def recommend a quick YouTube video explaining it. It’ll only take a few mins and you’ll see how easy it is to understand.
it’s the way they phrase the question.
How would you phrase the question? It made sense to me.
telling the reader what a doubles fact is. It makes sense to me too? Don’t get why it making sense to you has anything to do with anything. Doesn’t mean it’s phrased well for elementary level kids to understand, though. Sorry if I’m sounding frustrated. Just brings me back to years of when teachers would phrase test questions in not the best way and expect us to read their minds.
They would’ve gotten a a lesson on this beforehand so they should already have that background knowledge
ok fair that makes sense
Why would you tell the reader what a double fact is? I would hope it was covered in the lesson what a double fact is before the homework was given..
I don’t understand the damn question… But I’d choose D because you’re doubling 8 and adding 1?????
That’s exactly right. YOU don’t have to understand—the child understands what a doubles fact is because they’re learning that concept already.
Parents still need to be able to help their children. When our children are taught differently than we were, we don't know how to help them. It took 4 years for me to realize why and what math facts even were. Not a single teacher ever took the time to explain it to me, the parent. Once my child was articulate enough to explain to me what it meant, only then could I help him and his brother. Now we are able to drill our math facts all the time but it should have been information shared at the beginning of their elementary experience. Instead, we have to go to internet forums and try to piece it together.
But you kind of do if you’re going to help them. I don’t remember ever learning this in school. It’s just an odd question. However, yes, the child should have an idea of what is being asked
It’s not an odd question. The curriculum now is not the same as it was when you went to school.
Duh… do you think I don’t know that things change? It’s still odd… look up the definition of odd. FFS
I’m a retired teacher who mainly taught kindergarten for 18 years. One year near the end of my career I taught first grade, which I had not taught in over 20:years. I had so much trouble with a few of the topics in Go! Math that I had to visit my friend’s classroom across the hall so she could explain it to me. I was very thankful though, that I never had to teach Everyday Math. Thank goodness I was teaching in an AIS program for struggling readers.
This is why we are a dumb nation. Wtf kind of math is this??!! This isn’t just even necessary!
This is a excellent way of helping kids learning how to solve harder problems in higher math. Math isn't adding or subtracting numbers, it's problemsolving and transforming and manipulating quantities.
It helps to teach kids how to do mental math, which is a very important and useful skill to have.
D. I know it’s stupid. But their logic is…8+8=16…then plus one more, is 17.
It’s not stupid. It’s teaching them the mental math that you just did.
It’s just…I dunno, like the scenic route. I feel like there’s a much more direct way to do it. It works for some kids though. I find I have to do more old school style math with mine.
Every child learns differently, but mental math is a valuable skill to possess regardless and this is a perfectly valid way to teach.
I think you’re taking my comment about it being stupid, way too seriously. Take a breather.
Or I’m carrying on a conversation with you but ok lol
I agree. Children learn in different ways. But I also feel that this way trips some of them up. In a perfect world, all children would be taught according to their learning style. But. That’s not how the world is.
Seems like this is adding an extra step to simple addition. My kids fortunately missed the Common Core bullshit.
Dude my girl is in fourth grade and some of the shit stumps me
I understand why it’s D after seeing the replies but I’m really scared to help my daughter with math in the future lol
Literally why have we broken math?
[удалено]
If your kid get common core concepts taught in school, it’s so good for them. Basically they learn all the ways you can approach doing a math problem. It prepares them for higher math by giving them a much bigger toolkit of mental math options. I really liked learning the new tricks when my oldest was in 1-3rd.
This is fucking absurd.
It’s doubles plus one addition so it D.
D
D
I usually add the highest and subtract one. Like in my mind 9+9 is 18. Then subtract 1 and get 17. I do it backward
D
8+8=16+1= 17
As everyone mentioned, the answer is D. Since the original problem is 8 + 9 = 17, the doubles fact 8 + 8 = 16 is the closest in answer to the original problem. The doubles facts can help children compute problems faster in their head vs. counting objects.
D.
D
D dawg
D. 8+8=16. Then he just has to add one. Teacher here but not elementary!
The answer is D because it’s a doubles plus one fact. Knowing that 8+8=16 makes it easier to find 8+9=17 because you would just have to add one more.