She makes careless errors - subtracting when she should add, or borrowing automatically when it's not needed, for instance. She is slow as molasses, and will sit staring blankly at a problem for a long time, whispering it to herself over and over. When the class does timed math drills, she'll bring home a set of 3 sheets, which they were given 3 10-minute periods to complete. The addition set will have maybe 5-10 problems done. The multiplication set will have more - I've seen as many as 30. The subtraction sheet will be covered in complaints about hating school. I know she knows the material; she can do much harder stuff at home.
oooh oooh ask me!!! i have seen this!!
yeah, we have a ds10 who is abysmally slow most of the time in school assigned math, especially when time is emphasized. The multiplication, etc., aren't much of an issue when he has a serious math problem to really challenge him. He is slow when things are low-level, he is of normal speed when the problem solving is the main event. (can't do a sheet of multiplication problems in the same time as other 5th graders, is doing just fine with algebra - at home). I am not saying that is great, it does present a lot of challenge to get people to see he has some considerable math ability, but it may not be the huge stumbling-block to all other math that some teachers make it out to be (inability to care about/complete a time math fact sheet).
And, recalling my childhood, when mom would drop me off at the library on a saturday afternoon for *hours*, and it was just the coolest thing, I am going to have to start doing that with ds10 (or at least go with).
