FACT FLUENCY: HOW CAN I HELP? Grade 2 Title I Math Families December 1, 2010 WHAT DOES THE RESEARCH SAY? “Ability to recall basic math facts fluently is necessary for students to attain higher-order math skills.” “Rapid math-fact retrieval has been shown to be a strong predictor of performance on mathematics achievement tests.” “Studies have found that lack of math fact retrieval can impede participation in math class discussions, successful mathematics problemsolving, and even the development of everyday life skills.” http://www.scholastic.com/administrator/math/mathfluency.htm WHAT IS TOOLS FOR SUCCESS? TFS is an oral fact fluency program used for all four operations: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Students take a placement test to place them in a level: A to Z. Students take timed oral fact fluency tests and must answer 28 facts correctly in one minute. Media Elementary School’s goal is for each student to progress through at least one operation. WHAT DOES TFS LOOK LIKE IN SCHOOL? Students test into an operation and a level. Students try to “check-out” of a level at least a few times per week. Students engage is strategy lessons based on their current levels. Students write their facts daily in a fact fluency notebook. Students engage in timed fact practice at least a couple times per week. Students bring home a Note from School to share their progress with the program. WHAT DOES TFS LOOK LIKE OUT OF SCHOOL? Adult family member reads the Notes from School to check your child’s progress. Adult and child set up a routine for fact practice. Adult sets a timer to time your child on the top half of the book (worksheet) for 1 minute and 30 seconds. Adult sets a timer to time your child on the bottom half of the book (test) for 1 minute. AT-HOME FACT FLUENCY NOTEBOOK Divide one page into four parts. Write one fact repeatedly in each section. Each page should have four facts. AT-HOME FLASH CARD CREATIONS Write each fact on five different cards. Write a total of 20 cards (4 facts, 5 times each). Review the cards daily and add them to the ring once your child passes a level or use another similar idea that works for you. FLASH CARDS FOR TFS ONLINE Visit Miss Seeley’s webpage http://www.rtmsd.org Click Media on the pull-down menu Click Staff Click Ms. Seeley Click Tools for Success on the left side. Click your child’s current level for practice. View the slide show using Power Point. OTHER WEBSITES FOR FACT FLUENCY PRACTICE Visit Mrs. Walker’s webpage http://www.rtmsd.org Click Media on the pull-down menu Click Staff Click Mrs. Walker Click Links for Learning on the left side. Click on one of the math links.