1 post tagged “math”
Last night, I was at the dinner table with Mitsuki, going over some math problems. There’s a focus on mathematics in the First Grade, we discovered. To support this, we’re been giving her extra math problems after she completes her homework. We make up these one-minute math tests (20 addition or subtraction problems), as well as some word problems (“James saw Star Wars three times. Then, he saw Up twice. Finally, he saw Madagascar 5 times. How many times did he go to the movies?”).
I gave her a visual-pattern question:
Complete the pattern.
square triangle square square triangle square triangle triangle square triangle square {blank} triangle square triangle {blank}
Hint: Break up the shapes into groups of four
Well, she didn’t get it at first. We looked at the hint together. Then I divided the shapes into groups of four:
square triangle square square
triangle square triangle triangle
square triangle square {blank}
triangle square triangle {blank}
As I said them aloud, she said, “Wait, I’ve heard this before.” She was remembering the bilateral move in aerobics wherein the exercise – such as a jab or tilt of the head – alternates sides, in the pattern of single single double (or, left right left left, right left right right).
Then, it clicked. “Oh!” she said and grabbed for the pencil and filled in the blanks.
square triangle square square
triangle square triangle triangle
square triangle square square
triangle square triangle triangle
It was quite gratifying to see that a) she could get her arms around this new type of problem, b) she recalled the musical/dance pattern and could related it to the math problem, and c) she (hopefully) walked away with a new technique for finding patterns.
Then, the kicker. What I was waiting for. Before she could move onto the next thing, I said, “Wait, I want to show you something” and I wrote R above the squares and L above the triangles. “This is also a drumming pattern,” and I played it for her.
RLRR LRLL RLRR LRLL
Half surprised, I watched her take it slow and tap it on the dinner table. It was easy for her.
“That,” I concluded, “is called a paradiddle.”
“A para-diddle?” she repeated and laughed.
I’d been waiting years to teach her that, and it took all but 5 minutes for her to get it.
