My apologies for the delay in responding. We have two people out on maternity leave, spring flooding here in ND, and are attending homeschool conventions across the country. It's been busy here!

Heather D gave good advise; thank you, Heather.

I'll answer the question on the AL Abacus. Let him use the abacus as often as he wants - preferably every time you do math lessons and play card games. At this level, unless the lesson asks your son to try without the abacus, let him use the abacus. We want him to build the mental image of the abacus, and, in order to do that, he needs to use it.

As the levels progress, he will use the abacus less and less. I promise he will not go off to college with an abacus tucked under his arm!

When you ask your son to "see" the abacus with his eyes closed (visualizing), some children are very literal and will announce that "I can't see the abacus with my eyes shut, Mom!" I like to phrase it with "Can you close your eyes and pretend to see the abacus?" This might work.

In regard to your question about repeating a level, I suggest you slow down and play more games. These games teach (remember to include the abacus!), provide practice, and, most importantly, provide an application for the facts they are learning.

How does your son do when playing Go to the Dump? Does he know the facts to make 10?

Please keep us posted.

Kathleen

My son does very well with Go to the Dump, but I'd say he has the partners memorized more than truly understanding why they are partners. I frequently have to remind him that they make 10.

Thanks for the advice on the abacus. We are nearing the end of Level B, so we'll spend lots of time on games before moving on to Level C. I just remember C being challenging for my older daughter, so I want to be sure he is ready to move on.

Thanks again for the encouragement!

When you son plays Go to the Dump, does he use the abacus? If he uses the abacus every time, it may solidify why the pairs make ten. So, for example, if he has a 3 in his hand and puts 3 on the abacus, he will be able to see that 7 is needed to make 10. Hopefully, not only will the 3 and 7 be reinforced as a pair (which it sounds like he has), but that 3 and 7 make 10.

Just out of curiosity, can your son put a number on the abacus if you call it out? When you say "7", does he hesitate to put on 7 beads in one move, or does he hesitate or count? How about if you say "3-ten 4"?

What about if you provide a number using the place value cards; can he go from the written number to the physical number on the abacus?

Kathleen

Yes, he can do all those skills. The breakdown seems to come in going to the oral/abstract. We are doing the 4-digit addition on the abacus right now and he does fine, but to go back to 1+2, he'll still say 12, even if I phrase it as "What is 1 and 2 more".

How old is your son?

When you say "What is 1 and 2 more" and your son answers 12, have him do it on the abacus and see if the answer is still 12 (which it's not!). Can he see that the previous answer of 12 is incorrect?

Another thought: he use the math way of counting, right? If he answers 12, ask him what the "other" name for 12 is [ten two, although my children say one-ten two]. Would that trigger that 1 + 2 isn't 12?

Kathleen

My son is 7 1/2.

Good ideas for helping him understand. I'll definitely give them a try. Thanks!!

How does he do in other subjects? Is there a chance he knows the answer, but giving you an impossible answer because he's bored or "messing" with you?

Keep us posted. I'm curious to hear how he does. I find myself rolling this situation around in my thoughts, so I'd like to hear "the rest of the story".

Kathleen

This may not be the rest of the story, but it is an update...

My son does pretty well in most subjects. I didn't mention before that he is deaf, though he does have cochlear implants. So, hearing is no longer a problem, but complex language can still be troublesome.

I don't think he's "messing" with me, but I do think his mindset has a lot to do with it. We do math with his younger brother, who comes by math very easily. I notice that when his brother has an off day, he suddenly has much stronger math skills.

I have been using the abacus more, and I can see some improvement. I wouldn't say the problem is solved, but it has only been a couple weeks, so I'm encouraged. Thanks again for the insight. Hopefully with some games this summer, he will be more on-track before we begin Level C.

Blessings, Amy