I always start off the year with fantasies of the perfect day filled with learning and excitement. Well, I’m the one learning today! I gave Kelsey our little Fact Family Graphic Organizer Math worksheet that I mentioned a few blogs ago, and she rolled her eyes like I was stupid. She exhaled and said, “Mom, this is too easy.” I didn’t mean to insult her with the worksheet, just to live out my school-room fantasies! To me, easy is fun.
I said, “Oh, it’s just for fun, really! You just start with the answer and think of all the equations!” Then she said, “There needs to be more spaces because I can do 1+1+2 to get four.” I felt really stupid because I had never thought of that! When I read ‘fact family’ I imagined 2+2, 3+1 and 1+3….. as did the person who designed the worksheet?
She is more creative than I am. Talk about thinking outside the box! She thought of more answers than spacing allowed! I saw the directions as a “no-brainer” and she saw them for people with ‘no brains.’ She saw the directions as limiting her where I saw them as obvious. So, once again, my kids are teaching ME!
Too often we give children answers to remember rather than problems to solve. -Roger Lewin
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