Multiplication and division resources for a 1st grader

January 16, 2015 12:07 PM

My first grader is asking about multiplication and division. Where do I start?

He does well in math at school. His class is up to adding double-digit numbers like 50+8, and three "partners" of single digit numbers.

He asked me about multiplication a couple months ago, and I got him a multiplication table and tried to explain it as best I could. Then last night he asked me to explain division. I did what I could with the forks and straws on the dinner table, but realize I suck at teaching, especially math.

What are some good books, apps, websites I can use to introduce him to multiplication and division? Thanks!

posted by DakotaPaul to Education (9 answers total)

I was your first grader's age in the early 1970s. Loved me some Multiplication Rock. I don't have ideas for division.
posted by Rob Rockets at 12:14 PM on January 16, 2015

Response by poster: Thanks, Rob Rockets. Just to clarify, I do like math and solving problems with it, it's just that I am no good at trying to explain it and don't want to lead him down the wrong path or get him frustrated with it because of my teaching.
posted by DakotaPaul at 12:19 PM on January 16, 2015

I really started to grok multiplication when it was explained to me that you could add 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 to get 10, or you could think of it that five 2's are 10. If you wanted to do it visually, you could use coins. If you have 5 nickels, how much money is that? (Also, learning to tell time on an analog clock, which requires you to think in increments of 5, was a huge help for learning multiplication by 5 and getting what multiplication is all about.)

In terms of division, it was all about pizza math. If I have 8 slices of pizza, and I want to split it among four people, how many slices can each person have?
posted by Sara C. at 12:41 PM on January 16, 2015 [1 favorite]

The MathStart books are great - my first grader loves Too Many Kangaroo Things to Do for multiplication and Divide and Ride for division, and there are lots of others.

Sushi Monster is a fun addition and multiplication app that I thoroughly recommend.

I also love the book Bedtime Math - it's a book of silly word problems that includes addition and subtraction, multiplication and division as well as averages and time-telling - if you're looking for ways to explain how math works without getting bogged down with equations, this is a great way in because it's up to your kid (and you) how to go about solving the problems.
posted by Mchelly at 12:48 PM on January 16, 2015

Multiplication is repeated addition, and division is sharing a pie or collection of blocks equally. There's nothing like the tactile feel of blocks or beads or buttons to teach arithmetic - far superior to apps or websites, if you ask me.

(And I doubt you "suck at teaching, especially math" - at this level, an involved parent trumps most other teaching aids.)
posted by RedOrGreen at 2:10 PM on January 16, 2015

Cooking is great for teaching multiplication and division.
posted by SyraCarol at 5:29 PM on January 16, 2015

He can level up at Khan Academy.
posted by dgeiser13 at 7:57 PM on January 16, 2015 [1 favorite]

Play around with arranging counters (M&Ms are traditional) in squares and rectangles. How many are two rows of five? How many are five rows of two? Can you make more kinds of rectangles with 12 counters, or with 13?
posted by yarntheory at 1:35 PM on January 17, 2015 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Thanks, everyone. He's a Lego fan and we have tons of bricks. I'll come up with some ways to demonstrate multiplication and division using those.
posted by DakotaPaul at 2:08 PM on January 20, 2015