Kindergarten Math: goals and how we get there
A kindergarten math student at Learn To Be does three things:
- Learns the first math facts from memory.
- Works through the Kindergarten Math course.
- Practices a little every day (at home!).
The math facts
By the end of kindergarten, a student knows 85 addition facts from memory. All of them are new this year.
| Facts | How many | Learned in |
|---|---|---|
| Addition within 5 | 21 | Kindergarten |
| Addition within 10 | 64 | Kindergarten |
"From memory" means the answer comes instantly, with no counting, no fingers, and no songs.
First, learn what adding means
A student must understand what adding means before they memorize facts. The Math Facts course has 64 lessons. It teaches what each operation means. If your student does not yet understand adding, start there.
The flashcard decks
Each set of facts above has a flashcard deck at learntobe.org/decks. The student signs in to their own account. Start with Addition within 5. Move to Addition within 10 after the student masters it.
Each deck has two modes:
- Practice. Short practice. Cards the student misses come back more often, until the student masters every card.
- Challenge. A timed test. It shows which facts are fast, which are slow, and which the student missed.
If your student already knows the facts: run the Challenge on each deck. If the facts are fast, this part is done.
If your student does not: practice the current deck for 10 minutes at the start of every session. The student also practices it for 5 minutes every day at home.
The course
Kindergarten Math has 41 lessons. It covers counting up to 10, one more, comparing numbers, putting numbers in order, and finding the missing number in a list.
- Try the first few lessons. If they are easy, skip ahead to where the student starts making mistakes. Start there.
- After that, do not skip lessons. A student moves on only after they master a lesson.
Kindergarten Math is the first step. There is no lower course. If a lesson is too hard, go back to the lesson before it and practice it again. Math is a ladder. Each step needs the steps below it.
A typical session
- Math facts, about 10 minutes. Fast practice on the current deck. After the student masters a deck, this becomes a short warm-up.
- Course lessons. This is the main part of the session. Do one or two lessons together.
- Homework, if there is time. Work through tonight's hard problems together.
Between sessions (at home)
Daily practice happens at home, not in your session. A little every day works better than a lot once a week.
Tell the parent:
"Every day, have your child sign in at learntobe.org and practice their flashcard deck for 5 minutes. This is the one thing that helps most."
Show the parent and the student how to sign in and find the deck during your first session.
Other resources
- IXL. If your student has an IXL account through our pilot, its diagnostic shows the grade level your student works at in each part of math. Use it as an extra check, not instead of the course. See How should tutors use IXL?