Teaching the Think-Multiplication Division Strategy from ORIGO Education

Division can often be challenging for students, especially when remembering their division facts. But what if there was a simple yet effective strategy to make this easier? That’s where the “Think-Multiplication Division Strategy” comes in, a method that leverages the close relationship between multiplication and division.

The Challenge of Division for Students:

The lack of a concrete strategy is at the heart of the struggle with division. With a straightforward method, students often find it easier to recall division facts, which are crucial for advanced mathematical concepts. ORIGO Education simplifies this complex concept with our “Think-Multiplication Division Strategy,” found in The Book and Box of Fact Strategies: Multiplication and Division Set.

The Think-Multiplication Division Strategy:

The idea is simple but powerful. Using a picture card (like the one in the video) with thirty dots arranged in five equal rows encourages students to think about multiplication when they need to divide. This visual representation makes the abstract concept of division more tangible.

This strategy illuminates a vital aspect of learning division: the necessity of knowing multiplication facts first. Understanding multiplication lays the groundwork for grasping related division facts, making learning more intuitive and less daunting.

Applying the Think-Multiplication Division Strategy:

When students look at the picture card, they identify thirty dots arranged in five equal rows. By recognizing that there are six dots in each row and knowing that six times five equals thirty, they easily deduce the division fact that 30 divided by 5 equals 6. This method effectively uses their multiplication knowledge to solve a division problem.

Plus, the picture card is versatile. Holding the card one way demonstrates the sharing or partition model of division, but folding it shows the grouping or quotative model. In the latter, students know the number in each row but must figure out the number of equal rows or groups.

The “Think-Multiplication Division Strategy,” found in The Book and Box of Fact Strategies: Multiplication and Division Set, is more than just a teaching tool; it’s a paradigm shift in how division is taught. As the video demonstrates, bridging the gap between multiplication and division provides a more straightforward, more accessible path for students to master a challenging area of mathematics. Use this strategy to grow your students’ fact fluency and mental computation power!