Explorations In Math

To drill? Or not to drill? It’s a question that teachers and parents ask themselves and it’s an important one. Is drilling kids on their basic arithmetic facts effective? Or is it counterproductive? The answer depends on how we define “drill” and how we do it. If drilling is nothing more than regular rote recitation and memorization of facts, then I believe it’s counterproductive, although in an unexpected way. The child may, indeed, memorize the facts but this brings up two concerns. The first, as I’ve noted before, is that we don’t want our children to memorize the basic facts; we want them to know the basic facts, and there’s a world of difference. Second, we run a good risk of killing math spirit in children when we drill in this way. It becomes something boring and repetitious, a drudgery. (It’s called “drill and kill” for a reason.) And this feeling then begins to color all areas of math.

So how can we avoid these pitfalls? How can we change “drill and kill” into “drill for skill”? The overarching answer is to make learning basic arithmetic facts something children want to do, something they look forward to. Here are some ideas on how to do that.

Flash Cards

These cards have the problem on one side and the problem and answer on the other. The child is shown the problem side and states the answer. There are many ways they can be used productively. You can set incentives for learning new facts or for getting so many in a row correct. Kids can quiz their parents or teacher. For those who are competitive, competition is a way to engage them.

Verbal Drills

This is for when you’re with your child in the car, or at the breakfast or dinner table, or out for a walk. Simply give them a fact (e.g.: 5 + 4) and they give you the answer. It makes it much more engaging, though, if you alternate with your child: you give them a fact and then they give you one.

Mental Math

This is another kind of verbal drill, but instead of presenting problems individually, a series of numbers and operations are strung together. The child does the math mentally and responds with the correct answer. For example, for a 4^th grader the string might go like this: 8 + 3 x 2 – 12 = ?  For younger students, limit the number of terms and limit the operations to adding and subtracting.

Math Games

Yes, math games are a good way of drilling and there are many good commercial math games available and many non-commercial math games that utilize only cards, dice or paper and pencil.

Another question is how frequently should you drill? I believe that if you engage your children/students as they learn their facts, you can drill every day because they’ll enjoy it and look forward to it. And guess what? They will know them.

Do you have any drill activities you’ve found to be effective? If so, please send them to me to share with other readers. Thanks.

Dave Gardner

Mathematician in Residence