Posted by The Foo in Fascinating or Weird

I found two new interesting ways of multiplication (using a grid system) but am not sure whether it makes it harder or easier for kids learning it. I like and prefer the traditional stacked way but maybe it is because I am used to it.

J (my wife), who is an elementary school teacher, teaches her students a 4 grid system too but with a slightly different variation:

(sorry for my bad handwriting!)

6 Responses to “Multiplication with grids”

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   Kristyn said: @ 9:02 pm
   November 5th, 2006 

   
   

   I’m not sure I followed all of that, but I don’t think you have bad handwriting at all. Mine is a bit curvy, readable most of the time, but my husband writes in little tiny squiggles.

   Kristyn

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   Tim said: @ 10:55 pm
   November 5th, 2006 

   
   

   You know, I did a project on the history of computing in grade 10, and this reminds me a lot of Napier’s Rods.

   They date back to 1617, check it out on wikipedia!

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   Happy and Blue 2 said: @ 11:03 pm
   November 5th, 2006 

   
   

   I prefer the stacked version because that was what I was taught. The other method seems ok though..

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   kristarella said: @ 8:07 am
   November 6th, 2006 

   
   

   I’ve never seen those methods (other than the “traditional” one) I don’t mind that diagonal grid one.
   I still think school is getting easier though and children aren’t taught to think and reason as well as they could.

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   -t- said: @ 9:40 am
   November 6th, 2006 

   
   

   This grid stuff is a nice idea and certainly works, but it really leaves kids without any feeling for great numbers. Isn’t the point that they learn how to juggle with big numbers and lose their fear of them? So that they will be able to easily multiply great numbers?

   I was taught to split it up. 36 x 27 would be 6 x 27 plus 30 x 27, and 30 x 27 becomes 3 x 27 plus a 0 at the end of the result. I can do that without having to draw a grid and probably much faster too.

   So yeah, I go with kris, kids aren’t taught to see the greater perspective. Those workaround tricks have to be earned!

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   TheWriteJerry said: @ 9:48 am
   November 6th, 2006 

   
   

   Do you know why Pringles are superior to ordinary potato chips?

   Because they are stacked.

   And that’s just how multiplication equations should be - stacked.

   These grids strike me as somebody’s attempt to make things “easier” on kids when in fact they make the process more complicated and cumbersome.

   Real multipliers don’t need grids…

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