So, are you just talking about number lines in general?
I learned how to use those in grade school too. 20+ years ago. But the way you phrased it made me think there was more to it. Calling it nonsense is… shocking.
I guess we used it for an exercise or something a couple times, but never for more than indicating how numbers work. They’ve taken that idea and kind of run with it, instead of leaving it behind once the basics of addition have been mastered. I learned multiplication as just repeated addition, and there’s no reason IMO to get a number line involved because addition should already be mastered.
This is a 2nd grade class, and I expect them to have long since mastered addition. At that point, a number line feels like a crutch more than a useful tool. Sure, use them in kindergarten and first grade to grasp how counting works (and counting by 2s and 10s), but that should honestly be as far as it goes. But they still use it for fractions and larger sums and products.
So, are you just talking about number lines in general?
I learned how to use those in grade school too. 20+ years ago. But the way you phrased it made me think there was more to it. Calling it nonsense is… shocking.
I guess we used it for an exercise or something a couple times, but never for more than indicating how numbers work. They’ve taken that idea and kind of run with it, instead of leaving it behind once the basics of addition have been mastered. I learned multiplication as just repeated addition, and there’s no reason IMO to get a number line involved because addition should already be mastered.
This is a 2nd grade class, and I expect them to have long since mastered addition. At that point, a number line feels like a crutch more than a useful tool. Sure, use them in kindergarten and first grade to grasp how counting works (and counting by 2s and 10s), but that should honestly be as far as it goes. But they still use it for fractions and larger sums and products.