We adjust ourselves to the child’s learning pace – really?

My child is in second grade, what should he learn in math?

My child is in second grade, what should he learn in math? We were made to believe that the children should be adapted to the curriculum and not the other way around. Do you realize how illogical this is?! Some children are ready and able to learn math at the age of 5, while others only at the age of 6, 7, 8 and even later.

I really don’t know what else to say. I have taught a lot of kids who have been hurt by this. I have no doubt that if their math studies were coordinated with the age at which they were ripe to start studying, ripe to internalize the decimal system, then the math studies would be an enriching and enjoyable experience for them. Instead they experienced suffering and damage to their self-image.

I asked Bard (Google’s AI) to find out for me the age distribution in two cases. 1 – The age when children can solve exercises without using fingers or counting objects. 2 – The age at which children are mature to understand the decimal system. By the way, the decimal system is taught in second grade. Here are the results

Here are the results:

The age when children can solve exercises without using fingers or counting objects

• 5 years old: 10%
• 6 years old: 25%
• 7 years old: 50%
• 8 years old: 75%
• 9 years old: 90%
• 10 years old: 100%

The age at which children are mature to understand the decimal system

• 6 years old: 10%
• 7 years old: 25%
• 8 years old: 50%
• 9 years old: 75%
• 10 years old: 90%
• 11 years old: 100%

Of course, this is just a rough estimate, and there will be individual children who fall outside of this distribution.

conclusion

If you can, adapt the study to the child’s real pace. Even if in first or second grade he will seemingly not progress, when he is ready he will easily complete the ‘deficiencies’. If you are obliged to take comparative tests, then you have no choice but to adapt the study to what is required.

Chances are if your child is struggling with math it is because he was required to study before he was ready.

In any case, it is desirable to study mathematics in a beneficial way – without explanations, visualization, to advance to the next stage only after mastering the current stage.

Feel free to contact me with any questions.

Respectfully, Ami