Grade 1 Math: goals and how we get there
A grade 1 math student at Learn To Be does three things:
- Knows every addition fact from memory.
- Works through the Grade 1 Math course.
- Practices a little every day (at home!).
The math facts
By the end of grade 1, a student knows all 185 addition facts from memory. The facts from kindergarten stay in practice until they are instant.
| Facts | How many | Learned in |
|---|---|---|
| Addition within 5 | 21 | Kindergarten |
| Addition within 10 | 64 | Kindergarten |
| Addition within 18 | 100 | Grade 1 (new this year) |
"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.
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: start with the lowest deck that is not fast, even if it is a kindergarten deck. Practice it for 10 minutes at the start of every session. The student also practices it for 5 minutes every day at home. Then move up.
The course
Grade 1 Math has 97 lessons. It covers counting to 120, counting by 2s, 5s, and 10s, tens and ones, and comparing two-digit numbers.
- 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.
If the course is too hard, go down to Kindergarten Math. 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?