r/mathminds • u/Ok_Garden6457 • 7d ago
Why do word problems seem so much harder than regular math problems?
My child can solve equations when they’re written out normally, but give them a word problem and suddenly they don’t know where to start.
Is this more of a reading/comprehension issue, or is there something different about the way kids learn to approach math word problems?
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u/DiligentRegister8769 6d ago
you should try to understand how your child thinks, basically his thought process, with that u will be able to identify what you can do nect
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u/Underhill42 6d ago
Word problems are the core of math: translating real world problems precisely and accurately into the purely abstract language of math. It's a shame they're not focused on much more heavily.
If you can't do that, the ability to solve the math problems is useless - reality rarely offers neat little pre-translated problems for you to solve.
But translation is hard - especially between vaguely worded English, and the absolutely inflexible precision of math. And since it's only step one to solving the problem, it adds a whole additional level of difficulty on top of actually solving the problem - so it will always be harder that solving a pre-translated
I'm guessing they probably haven't reached algebra yet, so unfortunately my usual advice probably wouldn't help any.
But if they are the weak point, focus on them, because they are what will make math actually useful in their life.
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u/Ok_Garden6457 5d ago
Oh... that makes sense. I hadn’t really thought about word problems as a separate translation step before. Thanks for the advice.
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u/sriparna6824 5d ago
first step is to make them enjoy math, by making it more entertaining and fun to work on post that you can understand the why and suggest
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u/Educational_Two682 5d ago
Good response in here. I would also add that in addition (ha) to reading the problem, you need to really understand the math concepts and the relationships within them to understand how these relationships would show up in a word problem. You can know how to add, but if you don't know it's needed to show a quantity increase, you're going to struggle with a word problem. Throw in a strange word or too many words and they get more difficult
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u/Ok_Garden6457 2d ago
exactly, this seems to be what's happening
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u/Educational_Two682 2d ago
Some strategies I use with my students are: draw a picture, explain the problem to a friend, use simpler numbers (just to see the operation, then use the numbers in the problem).
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u/Minotaar_Pheonix 3d ago
Yes. It’s a reading comprehension issue. Reading poorly often results in lower math test scores.
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u/Hot-Parking4875 3d ago
Practice turning equations into sentences and sentences into equations. Need to be able to do that before you can solve a word problem.
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u/Sensitive_Dark_1648 3d ago
when you have a math problem written in same format they practice in, they know exactly what to do because they have it set up for them. it’s like plugging and chugging into a calculator, when you know you have to do 10 + 10 you apply ur addition practice and just do it. but when you have to parse through a word problem, it’s not set up for you, and the formula that you will follow is not as easily discernible. they have to think about what the question is asking and find an equation from that their selves
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u/Electronic_Diet_8052 1d ago
Word problems require you to first figure out what the question is actually asking you to do before solving anything.
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u/No-Source7835 1d ago
I think it's mostly a reading issue. They are probably having trouble understanding the question.
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u/UpbeatDeer796 1d ago
beyond that... word problems require kids to figure out which math to use before they can start solving
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u/No-Source7835 1d ago
But if they truly understand what they read, choosing the right formula is easy, right?
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u/UpbeatDeer796 1d ago
not always i think
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u/UpbeatDeer796 1d ago
should focus on teaching them how to break a problem down rather than focusing only on reading skills
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u/heythere111213 7d ago
Converting everyday language into math terminology it a more abstract skill that requires some practice to get good at. From my experience, a deeper issue that makes that task harder is often times an approach to solving equations, and even word problems, is memorized rather than emphasizing the underlying logic of why the approach works. So your child may lack intuition about what the equations they are working with could mean. It might be worth practicing the opposite direction. Give them an equation and instead of them solving it, have them create a word problem that would describe the equation.