Addition Spin!

Has your child mentioned addition spin?  It's a great game that I highly recommend to practice extending those addition facts they are already learning on Reflex.  Though it's still difficult for some students, most are catching on quickly.  They are learning to use facts they know to solve double-digit addition.  Get this... they're solving these problems mentally!

Here are the directions and everything you need to get started at home.

Materials needed:
- 1 Addition Spin spinner
- 1 paper clip
- 1 pencil
- 1 calculator
- 1 sheet of paper

Directions:

1.  Players take turns being the "Spinner".  The Spinner uses a pencil and a paper clip to make a spinner.

2.  The Spinner spins the paper clip.

3.  The Spinner writes the number that the paper clip points to (optional if the Spinner can remember this number in his/her head).

4.  The Spinner spins a second time and writes the new number (again, optional if the Spinner can remember both numbers in his/her head).

5.  The Spinner adds the 2 numbers and writes the sum on his/her side of the paper.  The other player should check to ensure the addition was done correctly.

6.  Players switch roles.  They stop after they have each written 3 sums.  Each player uses a calculator to find the total of his or her sums.

7.  The player with the larger total wins.

Tips for helping your child:

- Encourage them to add the tens place first, ignoring the ones place.  Example: 40 + 25.  Encourage your child to think 40 + 20 first and then to add the 5 afterwards.

- Point out addition facts they already know.  Example: 55 + 30.  Say "If you know that 5 + 3 = 8, then 50 + 30 = 80."  Then encourage the addition of the 5 in the ones place as well.

- Refrain from using this game to teach pencil and paper strategies such as stacking and carrying the one.  Those will be taught later this year.  This game is geared toward helping your child develop confidence in his/her mental math abilities.

- Keep the sessions short to maintain high interest.  One or two complete games is plenty.

Here's the spinner for you to print out and use at home.