Question: Okay, I have a question about the Rocket Math flashcards. I’m a retired teacher, doing some tutoring on the side now. I have TouchMath flashcards and Really Good Stuff flashcards. What is the difference from Rocket Math flashcards, other than your directions for use? Can the cards I have be used? I read somewhere on here that your goal is to help teachers and kids, not to just make money! LOL. Thanks!
Nancy
Answer: Good question. What’s So Special About Rocket Math Flashcards?
Remember: The best condition for learning is having a few things to learn in a sea of mastered material!
- Rocket Math flashcards are coded in sequence so that it is easy to have only 12 cards in the “working deck” at a time, and the right 12 cards at all times.
- Only 3 of the “working deck” are new or “hard.”
- When beginning addition and subtraction Rocket Math flashcards provide nine “name the numeral” cards so that students still have only three new facts to learn out of the first 12 cards in the working deck.
- Students are taught to practice by saying the problem and the correct answer without any hesitation.
- A “practice partner” follows a specified correction procedure any time there is an error or hesitation.
- Rocket Math flashcards allow for a few short practice sessions (3-4 minutes) each day.
- New cards are added to the “working deck” only after a “cold” run-through is 100% correct.
- The “coded” cards indicate which cards are to be removed to make room for the new cards.
- Mastered (removed) cards become the “review deck.”
- “Coding” allows users to follow the Rocket Math sequence–which is very smart and helps students learn the facts more easily.
Some of these points are, in fact part of the directions and could be used with other flashcards sets. However, to do this with other flashcard sets would require one to add some known facts to the set for starting out, and for one to number the cards in the right sequence. Thanks for asking!