Silent Math

 Sometimes when my Littles are a bit antsy or becoming easily distracted during school, I find that my SILENCE is more attention getting than my ability to wax eloquently about a particular topic.  

SILENCE even has proven quite "handy" during a math review.  This past week, instead of our traditional flash card review of his addition facts, Super Boy sat down with me to do a few minutes of SILENT MATH.  

I used my fingers to "announce" an addition fact, and he had to use his fingers to "announce" his answer.

By using my hands...NOT my MOUTH or a fancy FLASHCARD...I commanded more of his senses/attention.  He had to give me his complete attention or risk missing a part of the math fact.

In addition (no pun intended), he had to use increased reasoning skills to be able to supply the answer in a non-traditional form.  

As I hoped, SILENT math helped reign in and focus his thoughts on a busy afternoon.