We've been using just the regular workbook lately, actually. So I don't think the problems are too hard for him. (And I agree 100% that the challenging/intensive workbooks are much more hard-core! The logic in them is sometimes challenging for me! I'm glad I have the answers!) The thing I liked about them was that the more challenging problems worked him harder conceptually, but didn't require more math facts knowledge or speed. That seemed useful. But lately we've just been doing things differently. I decided I wanted to make math easy for him for a while rather than challenging him. We were trying to go "deeper, not faster," but I think now my philosophy is "neither deeper nor faster"! <sheepish grin>
To answer your questions, his addition facts are down reasonably well, though not down cold. I think he stillhas to think it through rather than having everything memorized, but he can think through addition pretty fast. He's significantly slower on subtraction--sometimes has to flip it around to addition to recall it. He knows maybe half the 0-10 multiplication facts, though not usually very fast, and he knows virtually none of the division facts.
So I guess that's a "no, he doesn't really have his math facts down yet."
Should I be drilling him more, do you think? The psych warned that too much focus on memorization--"drill and kill"--would likely quash his interest in learning.
*sigh* Honestly, I have been feeling like I'm walking a tightrope on this whole math issue. Too much drill? Not enough? Mostly I've been following my gut with it--try a little and if he seems tired of it, we move on to something else. But it's hard to know if I'm giving him what he needs. I just keep reminding myself that he's doing 3rd grade math, so if we did no more math for the rest of the year, he's not behind!
Still, I can't help feeling like I'm missing something that I should be doing for him.
Ugh. It's days like this, when I'm monopolizing the forum, that I'm glad I can type fast!
