Just a couple of thoughts, as I myself am still trying to understand exactly HOW they teach multiplication with EM - it is definitely different than when I went to school.
Part of MY DD8's confidence problem (not sure if this could be true for OP's DD), I believe, stems from random, well-intentioned comments the teacher has made that perhaps my DD is taking too-much to heart. But part of it just might be how they cover material in EM - I am trying to sort it all out. They will cover a seemingly random multiplication concept (appears briefly, and not comprehensively), then "spiral" out of it and do something else for quite some time. Then DD says the teacher says to the entire class "you should know your multiplication tables." DD meanwhile, internalizes this and assumes this means automaticity and mastery.
Fortunately, DD DID work on multiplication this summer, since I was trying to remedy the "confidence problem." DD clearly dislikes attempting to memorize, so I've tried to make it fun/interesting. At a certain point, though - you do just need to memorize them. While DD KNOWS multiplication, I do not think she has the automaticity yet. So when she flips to Extra Math and is sometimes "too slow," she quickly becomes frustrated.
I DO think she needs to develop the automaticity, but I think that it perhaps needs to be taught in a different way. I have been trying to encourage her to practice automaticity at home with her 6s, then 7s, etc. EM doesn't seem to do this systematically - or at least I haven't seen it. We do not have texts that come home, so sometimes it is a bit difficult to follow. I could be misunderstanding it.
I believe this is exacerbated in DD by having some academic areas come VERY easy (e.g., reading), so she instead just globally claims to "hate math." Which makes me say "oh, dear!" She is awfully young to be thinking this way! This child is normally EXTREMELY PERSISTENT in other areas of life, so I am trying to get her to apply some of that persistence to her academic life, too!
OTOH, DD seems to have excellent number sense and is great at word problems.
Blackcat, looks interesting. Is there an app?
It is interesting to see other bright, similarly-aged girls have confidence issues, too. I would like to improve DD's attitude about math! (Trying!)
