Before you work anything out, you have to pick how. Sometimes the fastest correct move is not to calculate at all.
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Students will learn to understand a word problem before calculating. They should ask: what am I trying to find? Do I need an exact answer, or is an estimate enough? Then they can choose a useful method: estimation, mental math, paper and pencil, or a calculator.
The main idea is simple: think first, then calculate. The situation determines what kind of answer is needed.
If a close answer is enough, students can round and estimate. If the answer must be exact, students should look at the numbers. Easy numbers may be solved with mental math. Problems with several steps or regrouping may be easier on paper. Long or complicated calculations may be easier with a calculator.
The method is a tool, not a rule. Students are learning to choose a tool that fits the problem.
🚨 Students may begin calculating as soon as they see numbers. Slow them down. Ask: what does the problem actually want to know?
Students may also think that estimation means guessing. Remind them that an estimate is a reasonable answer based on the numbers.
They may also assume that money always requires an exact answer. It depends on the situation. Estimating whether you have enough money is different from finding the exact change you should receive.
Use one situation and change the question. For example: four notebooks cost 98 cents each, and you have $5. Do you have enough? Round up, $1 times 4 is $4, and an estimate answers the question.
Then ask: you paid with $5, so exactly how much money should you have left? Now the student needs an exact answer. This helps students see that the same numbers can require different methods depending on what they need to know.
Connect this idea to Luke 14:28. Jesus used the example of a man who first sat down and counted the cost before building a tower. The lesson is not that Jesus was teaching arithmetic, but the example reinforces a useful habit: understand what you are doing before you begin.
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Before You Start
The words this lesson uses. Tap a card to see what it means, then come back to them whenever a question uses one.
Part One
Questions about the story you just read. Pick your answer straight off, or press Find it in the story if you would rather hunt for the sentence first.
Part Two
The word cards are at the top of this page. Look back at them as often as you need, then answer.